What Are The Symptoms Of Short Bowel Syndrome?

Anemia

Anemia means the body does not have enough functioning red blood cells to deliver oxygen to the tissues around the body. There are numerous causes of anemia, but iron and vitamin B12 deficiency are the most prevalent in short bowel syndrome patients. Iron is a mineral present in food that is absorbed in the first three to five feet of the small intestine. Once absorbed, iron is used to create hemoglobin, the substance that allows red blood cells to transport oxygen around the body. When the first part of the small intestine has been removed, anemia from low iron may occur.

Vitamin B12 is essential for the steady production of new red blood cells by the bone marrow, and it is absorbed by the lower region of the small intestine or the ileum. When the ileum has been removed in an individual affected by short bowel syndrome, the body is unable to absorb adequate amounts of vitamin B12 from food. This lack of vitamin B12 causes slowing production of red blood cells to the point where more red blood cells are dying than what the body can produce to replace them.