WELCOME EVERYONE!

Today we will educate you on blood cells. Anaemia is the disease where a patient has abnormally low counts of blood cells, so it would be best to know about blood cells first.

Our body’s blood is made up of many things we call cells such as red blood cells, white blood cells, platelets (PLATE-lets), and plasma (the fluid -non cell component of blood).

Red blood cells are shaped like a disc and look like doughnuts without holes in the center. Also known as biconcave shape.

They carry oxygen (product body cells need to live) and remove carbon dioxide (a waste product body cells need to excrete) from your body.These cells are made in the bone marrow which is a spongy tissue inside the bones.

biconcave disc shape of red blood cells

don’t these red velvet doughnuts look like red blood cells?

White blood cells and platelets (PLATE-lets) also are made in the bone marrow. White blood cells help fight infection when you are sick. Platelets stick together to seal small cuts or breaks on the blood vessel walls and stop the bleeding.

The many types and shapes of white blood cells-each with different functions 

platelets under an electron microscope than can see cells millions of times bigger

Anemia has three main causes:

• blood loss
• lack of red blood cell produced
• high rates of red blood cell destructed

These causes might be the result of diseases genetic conditions or other factors.