Low platelets, also known as thrombocytopenia, do not really often occur but they may bring terrible results along with those who suffer from them. Platelets, colorless blood cells, play a role in making blood clot or stopping bleeding from blood vessel injuries in other words, which is done by clumping and forming essential plugs. Low platelets are caused by a decrease in producing platelets in the bone marrow, which is indirectly caused by some factors like leukemia, anemia, viral infections like HIV or hepatitis, overconsumption of alcohol, or chemotherapy drugs.
It is important to find out appropriate treatments for low platelets because they leave a range of serious signs and symptoms including easy or excessive bruising, bleeding from the nose or gums, blood in stools or urine, prolonged bleeding from any cuts, petechiae particularly on the lower legs, unusually heavy menstrual flows, jaundice, or fatigue. People with mild low platelets may not have to experience treatment but those who have suffered from them for a long term need certain treatments suitable for their condition and symptoms including various natural ways to do at home.
This is time now for VKool.com to show you 14 natural treatments for low platelets in infants and adults. All of the treatments have been used for a long time including professional and natural ones to treat this disease. For those who are suffering from low platelets or taking care of someone with this disease, just spend a few minutes reading our article to have more experience!
14 Natural Treatments For Low Platelets In Infants And Adults
1. Prevent Injuries And Infections
One of the treatments for low platelets is protecting yourself from injuries and infections. In fact, it is very important for those who have been diagnosed with thrombocytopenia to avoid injuries and infections because they can worsen autoimmune reactions, enlarge spleen, and even trigger excessive bleeding. Therefore, you should be careful when working, operating machinery, playing sports, or exercising.
In addition, people with low platelets are recommended to avoid contacting with sports including football, boxing, karate, and skiing as they can easily cause bleeding. You should avoid exposure to viruses and infections as much as possible to protect your spleen, which is done by staying away from those who are sick even if they are your family members or colleagues. Besides, children with low platelets should also be kept away from day-care facilities.
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2. Avoid Exposing To Toxic Chemicals
Toxic chemicals are very dangerous stuff that should be avoided by anyone particularly those suffering from thrombocytopenia. Avoid exposure to toxic chemicals is known as one of the treatments for low platelets as well. Some typical chemicals to mention here are pesticides presented in non-organic produce, arsenic, benzene, and mercury from certain seafood that can all reduce the production of platelets indeed. There are, in fact, some cases in which people cannot avoid these chemicals but they can pay attention to some below tips to lower their exposure to them.
- Take use of natural beauty products and cleaning products that can be made by essential oils instead of chemicals or synthetic ingredients.
- Purchase mostly organic products if possible, grow some your own food with organic fertilizers in the individual garden.
- Restrict to eat large fish with a high level of mercury including big tuna, swordfish, and shark, getting amalgam fillings or mercury fillings in your teeth or use mercury thermometers.
- Use ceramic or glass containers to store foods as well as leftovers instead of plastic ones or something made by BPA aluminum toxins.
- Never burn chemical sprays and reduce burning fragrances and candles as much as possible.
- Paint your home with low-volatile paints.
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3. Decrease Alcohol And Sugary Drinks
Among some treatments for treatments for low platelets, decreasing intake of alcohol and sugary drinks is an effective one. Because alcohol slows down the production of platelets, heavy drinkers, of course, are at a higher risk of thrombocytopenia than others. According to some studies before, heavy consumption of alcohol can cause enlarged repression of blood cell production along with the production of improperly functioning blood cell precursors which don’t act well to clot blood.
More clearly, it has been indicated that a percentage of heavy drinkers have extraordinary levels of white blood cells along with faulty red blood cells which are prematurely destroyed, more frequent bacterial infections, and a higher ability of autoimmune reactions. It has been estimated that up to 43% of alcoholics with normal diet suffer from low platelets while the figure is up to 80% for those without enough nutrient intake. They a need decrease in alcohol consumption or find some strict treatments for low platelets indeed.
Because everyone has the different response to alcohol, you should know your own situation with medical history in order to consider how much alcohol you can sustain without complications. It is recommended for healthy adults to have no more than 1 drink for women and 2 drinks for men a day, which means those with thrombocytopenia should drink even less as one of the treatments for low platelets. Besides, you should avoid sugary and processed drinks as they also tend to disturb the normal production of platelets because of their available chemicals including artificial sweeteners such as synthetic colors, aspartame, and preservatives.
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4. Restrict Use Of Painkilling Drugs
While over-the-counter painkillers such as ibuprofen and aspirin can thin the blood as well as take effect on the platelet levels, reducing even stopping using them is considered as another of the treatments for low platelets as well. Although these drugs reduce your pains, they can also increase the risks of bleeding disorders when being used too frequently. The dose shall depend on each situation but if you tend to take them every day then you may have to experience extra unexpected side effects.
Instead of using painkilling drugs, you can also manage your pains naturally by lowering inflammation and improving diet as an indirect one of the treatments for low platelets though they cannot act as quickly indeed. For example, you can exercise or take anti-inflammatory supplements like omega-3 fish oil, peppermint essential oil, and turmeric to reduce pains and inflammation naturally.
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5. Treat Bruises Naturally
If you suffer from thrombocytopenia that causes redness or bruising on the skin, you should try natural homemade bruise cream to remove the pain and infection as one of the treatments for low platelets. This type of cream may contain soothing ingredients such as coconut oil, jojoba oil, frankincense, and shea butter that all give natural effects on the skin indeed.
Learn more: How to get rid of bruises naturally
6. Take Advantage Of Herbs And Supplements
Taking advantage of herbs and supplements instead of artificial ones is also considered as one of the treatments for low platelets. Not only vitamin B12 and folate help prevent deficiencies and inflammation for controlling pain, people with low platelets can also get benefits from consuming or taking some supplements as follows:
- Sea vegetables: sea vegetables help bind heavy metals, provide various nutrients people are often deficient in, and raise immunity.
- Vitamin D: vitamin D plays an important role in functioning the hematopoietic stem cells of bone marrow to produce platelets even support to manage autoimmune diseases. This vitamin is best absorbed through sunlight while exposing your bare skin to the sunshine in the early morning and late afternoon. Increasing the absorption of vitamin D is also an indirect one of the treatments for low platelets.
- Vitamin K: vitamin K is necessary for proper blood clotting along with anti-inflammatory properties, and helpful in controlling bleeding disorders. Therefore, consuming foods rich in vitamin K is also one of the treatments for low platelets.
7. Improve Diet
Improving diet plays a very important role in increasing platelets in the blood, which makes it one of the treatments for low platelets as well. As mentioned above, vitamin B12 or folate deficiency can cause low platelets from mild to moderate levels. Therefore, taking enough these supplements is a good way to resolve this as the first step among the treatments for low platelets. In fact, vitamin- B12 deficiency is considered to be very common in the world while being low in folate brings a higher risk of not only low platelets but also fatigue, heart problems, and pregnancy complications. You should consume some kinds of food like beef, salmon, tuna, chicken liver, turkey, and yogurt to supply vitamin B12 along with some foods like spinach, beans, avocado, lentils, asparagus, and beets to improve the intake of folate.
Not only should you get enough vitamin B12 and folate but you should also follow an unprocessed and balanced diet to improve immunity against infections and viruses thereby helping your body detoxify harmful chemicals you encounter. Vegetables and fresh fruits are particularly important for the demand of nutrient which can be listed as cruciferous vegetables, herbs, leafy greens, berries, and spices. It has been indicated that about 40% of people with thrombocytopenia experienced some improvement in the bleeding symptoms. More clearly, their diet contains only fresh foods as mentioned above without packaged and processed food, and limitation of low-quality meat and sugary foods.
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8. Vitamin C
Vitamin C is a very important factor for the whole health in common and increases platelet count in particular, which means increasing the intake of this vitamin is another of the treatments for low platelets as well. Vitamin C, also known as ascorbic acid, has been indicated stated to improve platelet count. It is a powerful antioxidant and a high consumption of this vitamin helps prevent free-radical damage of the platelets. In fact, your body needs 400 to 2000 milligrams of vitamin C a day which depends on your age and health condition. Some kinds of fruit like oranges, lemons, tomatoes, and kiwi and vegetables like spinach, cantaloupes, broccoli, and bell peppers are very rich in vitamin C for you. In addition, if you find difficult to take enough vitamin C through natural foods, you can take additional supplement form daily according to the direction of your doctors.
9. Vitamin-A Rich Foods
In fact, vitamin A is necessary for the production of platelets, which makes it important to supply your body with this vitamin as one of the treatments for low platelets. In addition, vitamin A plays an important role in the formation of protein in the body that aids in the process of cell growth and division. This is the reason why you should consume vitamin A-rich foods to maintain the normal body function including some kinds of food like a pumpkin, carrot, sweet potatoes, and kale. For example, you can drink 2 to 3 glasses of carrot juice per day to absorb enough amount of vitamin A.
10. Essential Oils
Sesame oil, cod liver oil, and flaxseed oil are known as natural treatments for low platelets. Sesame oil, cold-pressed oil, is very helpful in raising the platelet count due to its own properties. More clearly, this oil reduces free radical damage and inflammation in the body thereby improving the blood circulation. To use sesame oil as one of the treatments for low platelets, you can consume 1 to 2 tablespoons of sesame oil 2 times per day or rub some of it on lymph node areas to increase platelet counts several times a day or use it for cooking.
In addition, the consumption of cod liver oil and flaxseed oil may help strengthen the immune system indeed. It has been indicated that those with low blood platelets approach the treatment for this condition more easily when consuming these kinds of oil. While autoimmune disorders cause thrombocytopenia or low platelets, the 2 oils help reduce inflammation in the body and improve the blood circulation throughout the body. However, you should be careful when using them because they can act as blood thinners as well.
11. Water
Water is a very important factor for the whole health in common and for the production of blood cells in particular.
Because the blood cells are made up of protein and water, it is highly recommended, particularly for those with low platelets, to drink water as much as possible throughout the day. However, people with this disease should avoid consuming cold water because it can bring bad effects to the digestive tract therefore, the body cannot absorb nutrients properly. In conclusion, drinking filtered and purified water kept in the room temperature is the best choice, which stimulates the body to produce more blood cells then improve the platelet count as well. It is advised to drink 8 to 10 glasses of purified water per day to supply the body with necessary minerals and supplements.
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12. Milk
Not only water but milk is also an essential drink for the human body that is high in calcium helping the body generate a number of essential platelets. The mineral presented in milk, calcium, works along with vitamin K and fibrinogen, a name of protein in milk to increase the platelet count thereby improving the ability of the blood in forming clots. In fact, calcium deficiency can make your body take much more time to form blood clots, particularly when resolving excessive bleeding. Along with consuming milk as one of the treatments for low platelets, you can also take in yogurt, cheese, and other organic dairy products in order to maintain optimum levels of calcium in your body.
13. Exercise
Along with the consumption of essential nutrients, you should follow regular an exercising plan to maintain a good health as well as one of the treatments for low platelets. In fact, regular exercise plays a role in boosting blood circulation and improving the immune system thereby increasing platelet counts. According to a standard program of British Columbia, people with each level of low platelets should follow different certain specific exercises as the guidelines follow:
- People with platelets between 15.000 and 20.000 should perform walking, sitting, standing, and gentle stretching.
- People with platelets between 20.000 and 40.000 should use some light resistance including weights, elastic tubing, and latex bands or do brisk walking.
- People with platelets between 40.000 and 60.000 should perform activities such as stationary cycling and golf.
- People with platelets above 60.000 should do aerobic exercises like jogging and biking.
However, people with platelets less than 15.000 should avoid all types of exercise because it can increase the risks of bleeding.
14. Some More Tips
- Besides a number of treatments for low platelets, you should pay attention to some tips as follows to get the better results from your condition:
- Avoid tonic water since its quinine can cause a decrease in blood platelet counts and restrict the consumption of alcohol as it can slow the production of platelets presented in the bone marrow.
- Avoid eating raw vegetables as they can damage the intestinal lining, so steam them until soft before consuming alternatively.
- Avoid processed and canned foods that don’t provide essential nutrients and avoid all dairy products like cheese, butter, milk, and yogurt for a few days because they can contribute to the formation of mucus and worsen some autoimmune diseases.
- Add some foods that work as blood purifiers, for example, aloe vera and add brown rice, whole-grain cereals, and whole-wheat products to your diet instead of white flour and white rice.
- Get enough 7 to 8 hours sleeping per night so that your body can recharge and produce essential platelets.
- Avoid activities that easily cause injuries.
- Consult your doctor if necessary to get more information about your condition before deciding some treatments for low platelets.
Related article: 44 Best Foods To Increase Blood Platelets Count
After reading the article on 14 natural treatments for low platelets in infants and adults in our main Health page, hope that you can know how to treat low platelets effectively with both professional and natural methods. Please let us know if you have any question by leaving them below and share with us other treatments for low if you really get.
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