Hi, I was wondering if people in this community had any experience with, or advice for people with the blood disorder Beta Thalassemia Minor who would like to eat a raw vegan diet. Taking Iron supplements is not an option for me as it causes Iron overload in the liver of Thallesemics and as a child I was mis-prescribed Iron for 14 years which damaged my liver. I've been vegan and partly raw vegan in the past and my Haemoglobin levels do tend to drop easily, but recently after a bad bout of influenza I lost my appetite completely and since I've been back on solids I have been turned off cooked foods. Have been living mostly on fruit and salad veg and a few nuts, but mainly my body just wants to eat fruit. I have a background in Naturopathic Medicine so I have been managing to eat healthy enough and today decided to research Beta Thal and raw vegan diets, but really can't find anything out there apart from a few lists of Haemoglobin building foods so if anyone here has anymore advice for me that would be really great. Thanks

Hi Gitana,

You might want to google Mercola and Thalassemia and see what you find since Mercola also has Thalassemia and promotes Raw Food. I'll include my File Preview for Thalassemia below and you should be able to recognize Mercola's comments.

Thalassemia
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…see “Anemia” file…
…see “Chlorophyll - Heme Molecules” in Graphics file…
…see “Iron” file…
…see “Iron Content of Foods” in Graphics file…
…see “Sickle Cell Anemia” file…
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…File Preview…
• A Special Interview with Dr. Duane Graveline
• Which we know is dangerous. I have a congenital condition called thalassemia which results in very low red blood cell counts because there is a rapid turnover because one of the molecules of hemoglobin isn’t functioning properly, the chains. As a result, there seems to be an association with this that anyone who has thalassemia has very low cholesterol levels, the typical is below 150. So my whole life, I have had my cholesterol levels under 100 many times. That’s not a good thing. I mean, you need cholesterol. It’s part of what we require…
• Little-Known Secrets about Optimal Iron Levels
• Anemia can also be caused by:
• Genetic hemolytic anemias such as sickle cell anemia, and thalassemia (also known as Mediterranean anemia), which I have. It’s a type of genetic anemia where the hemoglobin is not well formed. As a result your red blood cells become very small, so you have a larger number of them, and a relatively low number of hemoglobin
• Iron in Your Blood
• There is speculation that the genetic mutation linked to hemochromatosis may have emerged to help protect ancient humans from iron deficiency resulting from a switch from a hunter-gatherer “Paleo” diet to one based on carb-heavy farming
• This Health Issue Has Been of Major Importance to Me and My Family
• This test saved my dad’s life 20 years ago when I discovered he had a ferritin level close to 1000. It was because he has beta-thalassemia. With regular phlebotomies, his iron levels normalized and now the only side effect he has is type 1 diabetes. The high iron levels damaged his pancreatic islet cells and now he has what is called “bronze” diabetes and so requires the use of insulin.
• I also inherited this from him so this is a personal issue. Thankfully, I am able to keep my iron levels normal by removing about a quart of blood a year. This is removed not all at once but over a few dozen deposits.
• I screened all my patients with ferritin levels and noticed nearly one-fourth of them had elevated levels. So I would strongly encourage you and your family to be screened annually for this, as it is SO MUCH easier to prevent iron overload than it is to treat it.
• Scoliosis
• Other chronic or genetic disorders where scoliosis and low bone densities occur together include:
• Thalassemia
• Low Glutathione Levels
• Diseases / Conditions With Low Glutathione Levels
• Thalassemia
• Beta thalassemia
• What is beta thalassemia?
• Beta thalassemia is a blood disorder that reduces the production of hemoglobin. Hemoglobin is the iron-containing protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen to cells throughout the body.
• In people with beta thalassemia, low levels of hemoglobin lead to a lack of oxygen in many parts of the body. Affected individuals also have a shortage of red blood cells (anemia), which can cause pale skin, weakness, fatigue, and more serious complications. People with beta thalassemia are at an increased risk of developing abnormal blood clots.
• Beta thalassemia is classified into two types depending on the severity of symptoms: thalassemia major (also known as Cooley's anemia) and thalassemia intermedia. Of the two types, thalassemia major is more severe.
• The signs and symptoms of thalassemia major appear within the first 2 years of life. Children develop life-threatening anemia. They do not gain weight and grow at the expected rate (failure to thrive) and may develop yellowing of the skin and whites of the eyes (jaundice). Affected individuals may have an enlarged spleen, liver, and heart, and their bones may be misshapen. Some adolescents with thalassemia major experience delayed puberty. Many people with thalassemia major have such severe symptoms that they need frequent blood transfusions to replenish their red blood cell supply. Over time, an influx of iron-containing hemoglobin from chronic blood transfusions can lead to a buildup of iron in the body, resulting in liver, heart, and hormone problems.
• Thalassemia intermedia is milder than thalassemia major. The signs and symptoms of thalassemia intermedia appear in early childhood or later in life. Affected individuals have mild to moderate anemia and may also have slow growth and bone abnormalities.
• How common is beta thalassemia?
• Beta thalassemia is a fairly common blood disorder worldwide. Thousands of infants with beta thalassemia are born each year. Beta thalassemia occurs most frequently in people from Mediterranean countries, North Africa, the Middle East, India, Central Asia, and Southeast Asia.
• What genes are related to beta thalassemia?
• Mutations in the HBB gene cause beta thalassemia. The HBB gene provides instructions for making a protein called beta-globin. Beta-globin is a component (subunit) of hemoglobin. Hemoglobin consists of four protein subunits, typically two subunits of beta-globin and two subunits of another protein called alpha-globin.
• How do people inherit beta thalassemia?
• Thalassemia major and thalassemia intermedia are inherited in an autosomal recessive pattern, which means both copies of the HBB gene in each cell have mutations. The parents of an individual with an autosomal recessive condition each carry one copy of the mutated gene, but they typically do not show signs and symptoms of the condition. Sometimes, however, people with only one HBB gene mutation in each cell develop mild anemia. These mildly affected people are said to have thalassemia minor.
…End of File Preview…
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I thought that Mercola's comment ** on hemochromatosis was interesting compared to what T. C. Fry said about Sickle Cell Anemia ***...

**There is speculation that the genetic mutation linked to hemochromatosis may have emerged to help protect ancient humans from iron deficiency resulting from a switch from a hunter-gatherer “Paleo” diet to one based on carb-heavy farming

***T.C. Fry states that the sickle cell trait is an inherited defensive mechanism against malaria, and that sickle cell anemia was caused by a deficiency of thiocyanate. Foods that contain thiocyanate include: yams, cassava, carrots, lima beans, apricots, peaches, flaxseeds, cabbage, collard greens, broccoli, and cauliflower. Dr. Oji Agbai claims that recovery was not only relatively rapid, but, as long as the diet was observed, permanent.

Hi John, thanks for researching and posting that information.

I'm getting a little confused by the conflicting information I am finding. Dr Mercola says a person with Beta Thalassemia Minor should be avoiding iron high foods as these can cause Hemachromatosis (iron overload), but then some people say to eat heme building foods ?? But heme building foods are high in iron. I've experienced Hemachromatosis and am left with a damaged liver, but I'm also always anaemic. A little confused. Will keep researching and this week phone around for a naturopath/nutritionist to talk to.