12-year-old girl diagnosed with anemia after drinking three cups of coffee a day! Can she still drink coffee happily in the future?

Autumn and winter arrive, the weather is getting colder

Warming and refreshing coffee

More and more people like it

But a young girl

Because I drink 3 cups of coffee a day

Drinking caused anemia

What is going on…

3 cups a day, 12-year-old girl is anemic

Sisi (pseudonym) from Zhejiang is 12 years old and a junior high school student. Last weekend, Sisi was admitted to the pediatric department of a local hospital because of "low hemoglobin" found in the physical examination. The blood routine showed that Sisi's hemoglobin was only 69g/L (normal children 110-160g/L), and the hematocrit was 25.9%, which is moderate anemia .

The doctor who received her recalled, "What impressed me most was that when we examined her, we found that even her fingernails were as white as paper, without any blood ."

The child did not have any bleeding in the stool or excessive menstrual flow, so what was the reason? After asking about the medical history, it was learned that due to the recent study pressure, Sisi always habitually drank coffee to refresh herself, drinking at least 3 cups of instant coffee a day.

The doctor continued to ask Sisi about her living habits. It turned out that the little girl "loved beauty" and had been eating a vegetarian diet for a long time, and almost never ate meat.

After completing relevant examinations and investigating the situation, the doctor considered that the cause of Sisi's anemia was insufficient iron intake and absorption disorders caused by her own lifestyle habits , coupled with unbalanced nutrition and folic acid deficiency.

A while ago

#Drinking coffee can affect iron absorption and cause anemia#

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How to drink coffee healthily

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Does coffee affect iron absorption?

The answer is: Yes, but don't worry too much.

One reason is that coffee only affects the absorption of non-heme iron, the kind found in grains and vegetables, but has no effect on the heme iron found in meat (beef, lamb, fish and poultry).

Here we need to explain the meaning of "non-heme iron" and "heme iron":

Iron is a very important trace element for the human body. Iron sources can be divided into two categories: heme iron and non-heme iron.

Heme iron is only found in animal foods, such as animal liver, animal blood, red meat, poultry, etc. Non-heme iron mainly comes from plant foods, such as spinach, beans, etc.

Although both non-heme iron and heme iron can supplement our iron, the effects are quite different. Heme iron, which is iron from animal food sources, can be better absorbed and utilized by the human body. The absorption rate of non-heme iron is very low and it is more difficult to be absorbed and utilized by the human body.

While plant ingredients such as polyphenols, caffeine, and phytic acid in coffee give coffee a wonderful taste, they also combine with iron, snatching the position of iron ions, reducing the iron absorption rate, and thus affecting the absorption of non-heme iron.

One study found that drinking coffee while eating a burger reduced the absorption of non-heme iron from the burger meal by 39% per cup of coffee.

But the good news is that there are many sources of iron in our diet, and caffeine intake does not have a big impact on the body's overall iron absorption. In fact, coffee only contributes about 6% of the iron in a meal.

Another reason is that the effect on iron absorption also depends on when you drink coffee .

Because coffee only hinders the absorption of some iron when you take it, and does not cause the loss of iron in the body. Studies have found that drinking coffee one hour before a meal has no effect on the absorption of iron.

Can drinking coffee regularly cause anemia?

In fact, studies in the UK, South Korea and France have found that caffeine consumed from coffee or tea does not cause iron deficiency and anemia in healthy people.

In 2021, the average coffee consumption per capita in China is only 9 cups per year, which is much lower than that in the United States, Japan and other countries (e.g., the United States is about 340 cups per year, and Japan is about 293 cups per year). The average per capita coffee intake in the United States and Japan is much higher than that in my country, but their anemia rate is lower than ours.

United States: A survey showed that the iron deficiency anemia rate among women aged 12 to 21 was 6.3%, and another data showed that the rate among women aged 15 to 29 was 7.1%.

Japan: In the general population of Japan, the anemia rate among women aged 20-29 is 7%.

China: According to the "Report on the Nutrition and Chronic Disease Status of Chinese Residents (2015)", the anemia rate of residents aged 6 and above in my country is 9.7%. The monitoring data of the nutrition and health status of Chinese residents from 2010 to 2012 showed that the total anemia rate of urban and rural residents in my country was 9.7%, including 7.0% for males and 12.6% for females; another data showed that the anemia rate of women aged 18 to 45 in my country was 15.67%.

In general, as long as you can ensure that you get enough iron in your daily diet, such as eating more lean meat, and eating fruits and vegetables separately from coffee (vitamin C in fruits and vegetables can promote iron absorption), you don't have to worry about drinking coffee causing anemia.

In real life, few people suffer from anemia due to drinking coffee. Many people suffer from iron deficiency anemia not because of drinking coffee, but because they do not consume enough iron.

How to drink coffee healthily?

For healthy people, normal coffee drinking will not lead to iron deficiency and anemia. Therefore, coffee can still be drunk, but it is best not to exceed 4 cups a day.

However, for people with iron deficiency anemia, it is recommended that:

1. Try not to drink coffee while eating. It is recommended to drink it one hour after a meal.

2. Coffee only affects "non-heme" iron and has no effect on "heme" iron. If you drink coffee, you can eat more lean meat, fresh fruits and vegetables. You can also take iron and vitamin C supplements appropriately to ensure that you can take in enough iron raw materials.

3. If you really want to drink it but are worried about affecting the absorption of iron, you can also choose decaf coffee.