Anaemia (anemia) is a condition where you don’t have enough healthy red blood cells or haemoglobin, so your blood cannot carry as much oxygen around your body as it should.

What is anaemia?

Anaemia means:

  • The number of red blood cells is lower than normal, or
  • The haemoglobin inside them is too low, or
  • The red blood cells/haemoglobin are abnormal and don’t work properly.

Because haemoglobin carries oxygen, less haemoglobin usually means less oxygen reaching organs and tissues, which is why people feel tired and weak.

Common symptoms

Typical symptoms build slowly and can be mild at first.

  • Tiredness and low energy.
  • Weakness or feeling “washed out.”
  • Shortness of breath, especially on exertion.
  • Dizziness or light‑headedness.
  • Pale skin, gums or inner eyelids.
  • Fast or pounding heartbeat (palpitations).
  • Headaches, poor concentration and irritability.

In more severe or long‑term anaemia, people may have chest pain, very breathless activity, or reduced ability to do daily tasks.

Main types and causes

There are many types, but these are the big groups.

  • Iron‑deficiency anaemia: Most common worldwide; caused by low iron intake, poor absorption, or blood loss (heavy periods, stomach or bowel bleeding, etc.).
  • Vitamin B12 or folate deficiency anaemia: Due to low intake (diet), poor absorption (e.g. pernicious anaemia, gut disease), or increased need (pregnancy).
  • Anaemia of chronic disease: Linked with long‑term illnesses (infections, inflammatory or kidney disease) which interfere with red blood cell production.
  • Haemolytic anaemias: Red blood cells are destroyed faster than they are made (autoimmune diseases, certain medicines, infections).
  • Inherited anaemias: Such as sickle cell disease and thalassaemia, where genes affect haemoglobin or red cell structure.
  • Aplastic or bone‑marrow related anaemias: Bone marrow does not produce enough blood cells (can be due to medications, toxins, autoimmune processes, or unknown causes).

Globally, iron‑deficiency anaemia is still very common, particularly in women of reproductive age, young children, and people with poor diets or chronic blood loss.

Why anaemia matters in 2026

Anaemia remains a major public health issue: the World Health Organization notes it particularly affects women and children, and it can impair child development and pregnancy outcomes. It is also linked with worse outcomes in chronic diseases and can affect work capacity and quality of life.

Recent clinical discussions (up to early 2026) continue to focus on:

  • Better screening in pregnancy and early childhood.
  • More precise iron therapy (oral vs intravenous).
  • Managing anaemia in chronic kidney disease and heart failure.

How anaemia is diagnosed

Doctors usually start with:

  • Medical history and examination.
  • Full blood count (FBC/CBC) to check:
    • Haemoglobin level.
    • Number and size of red blood cells.
  • Other tests depending on suspected cause:
    • Iron studies (ferritin, transferrin).
    • Vitamin B12 and folate levels.
    • Kidney and thyroid function tests.
    • Tests for blood loss (stool tests, endoscopy) or inherited conditions.

Anaemia is usually defined when haemoglobin is more than 2 standard deviations below the normal range for age and sex.

Treatment in brief

Treatment always depends on the cause.

  • Iron‑deficiency: Iron supplements (tablets or sometimes IV) and treating the source of blood loss or poor intake.
  • B12/folate deficiency: Vitamin injections or tablets, plus dietary advice.
  • Anaemia of chronic disease: Managing the underlying disease; sometimes iron, erythropoiesis‑stimulating drugs, or transfusions.
  • Inherited anaemias: Specialist care, which may include transfusions, medicines, or bone marrow transplant in select cases.
  • Severe or symptomatic anaemia: May need blood transfusion and urgent investigation.

Simple illustration

Imagine each red blood cell as a tiny delivery truck carrying oxygen “packages” to every part of your body. In anaemia, you either have too few trucks, not enough packages per truck, or the trucks are faulty, so your tissues receive fewer deliveries and you feel tired and breathless.

TL;DR: Anaemia is when your blood cannot carry enough oxygen because of too few or poorly working red blood cells or haemoglobin, leading to tiredness, weakness and other symptoms, and it has many possible causes that need proper medical assessment.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.