• What Is Sickle Cell Disease?

• What Is Sickle Cell Trait?

• Who Is At Risk For Sickle Cell Anemia?

• How Common Is Sickle Cell Disease?

• What Are The Different Forms Of Sickle Cell Anemia?

• How Is Sickle Cell Anemia Diagnosed?

• What Are Commonly Prescribed Medications?

• Is There A Cure For Sickle Cell Disease?

• Is Sickle Cell Disease Contagious?

• Can a person born with SCD live a normal life, and what kind of challenge might a SCD patient face?

• What nutritional advice should I give to a sickle cell patient?

• Some highly recommended foods, fruits and vegetables for sickle cell disease sufferers

• NOTE

• What Is Sickle Cell Disease?

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  Sickle Cell Anemia is an inherited condition, like hair color or eye color. People with sickle cell disease inherit two defective hemoglobin genes - one from each parent - that affect the way their red blood cells are formed. The abnormal hemoglobin gene causes a distorted shape of red blood cells, making them form a sickle or C shape.

• What Is Sickle Cell Trait?

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  Sickle cell trait is when somebody inherits a copy of the sickle cell gene from only one parent, and gets a normal hemoglobin copy from the other parent. People with sickle cell trait do not have sickle cell anemia, but they can pass the sickle cell gene to their children. If you have sickle cell trait, it may be helpful to meet with a genetics counselor before having children of your own.

• Who Is At Risk For Sickle Cell Anemia?

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  In the United States, sickle cell anemia affects about 100,000 people and the major population affected is African Americans. The disease occurs in about one out of every 500 African-American births and one in every 1,000 to 1,400 Hispanic births.

• How Common Is Sickle Cell Disease?

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  SCD is a common genetic condition resulting from genetic disorder that is inheritance of mutant hemoglobin genes from both parents.

  As at 2006, the data from World Health Organization showed 5% of the world's population to be carriers of sickle cell gene. Furthermore, each year more than 200,000 new cases of Sickle Cell anemia birth are recorded.

  In Nigeria, the frequency of SCD birth was about 20 per 1000 live births. This means that about 150,000-200,000 children are born annually with sickle cell anemia.

  Sickle Cell Disease is more rampant among people from sub-Saharan African, India, Saudi Arabia and Mediterranean countries.

• What Are The Different Forms Of Sickle Cell Anemia?

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  Sickle Cell Anemia (hemoglobin SS disease): This is the most common and worst type of sickle cell anemia. These patients have a large amount of hemoglobin S in their red blood cells and no normal hemoglobin.

  Sickle-hemoglobin C (hemoglobin SC disease): Typically a milder form of sickle cell disease. These patients have inherited two abnormal hemoglobin genes in their red blood cells - one hemoglobin S and one hemoglobin C.

  Sickle Thalassemia Disease Patients have a large amount of hemoglobin S in their red blood cells, combined with a second type of abnormal hemoglobin. Severity of this illness can vary.

  Beta-thalassemia is another type of anemia that causes the red blood cells to be smaller and contain less hemoglobin. If two parents have sickle cell trait, what is the chance their child will inherit the disease or trait?

  • 25% chance of a child with sickle cell anemia
  • 50% chance of a child with sickle cell trait
  • 25% chance of a child with normal hemoglobin

• How Is Sickle Cell Anemia Diagnosed?

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  In the United States, newborn screening for sickle cell is performed in all states. The newborn screen is performed on all babies before they leave the hospital for the first time and results can show whether the baby has sickle cell anemia, sickle cell trait, or other hemoglobin problems. It also is possible to diagnose sickle cell anemia before a baby is born by testing the amniotic fluid or tissue from the placenta.

• What Are Commonly Prescribed Medications?

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  Penicillin: All children from 3-months until 6 years of age should be given daily penicillin to prevent common infections associated with sickle cell. Some children will need penicillin for life.

  Folic acid: Folic acid is a key building block for red blood cells and is important in children with sickle cell anemia to help produce more blood cells than usual.

  Hydroxyurea: A medication that helps decrease the amount of hemoglobin S (sickle cells) in the body while stimulating the production of a different type of hemoglobin (hemoglobin F).

  Exjade: Used for treating chronic iron overload in patients with sickle cell anemia. Iron overload is most often due to blood transfusions.

Is There a Cure For Sickle Cell Disease?

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Yes there is. The only known cure for sickle cell disease is the "Bone marrow transplant".

• Is Sickle Cell Disease Contagious?

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  No. It is a hereditary disease.

• Can a person born with SCD live a normal life, and what kind of challenge might a SCD patient face?

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  Yes a person born with sickle cell disorder can have a very normal life with early detection and proper management. The major challenge SCD patients face especially in developing countries is late detection and lack of proper management when detected. Thus the improvement of quality of comprehensive health care given to SCD patients would go a long way in making the lives of SCD patients meaningful.

• What nutritional advice should I give to a sickle cell patient?

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  • Take lots of fluid (clean water, fresh juice, zobo drink etc) minimum 3 liters daily.
  • Avoid smoking
  • Avoid alcoholic drinks
  • Avoid foods with preservatives; rather take more of natural or locally sourced foods from your local market.
  • Do not over feed, but you can have small portions of in-between meals to avoid getting hungry.
  • Try as much as possible to eat a balanced diet (protein, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals).
  • Eat lots of leafy vegetables daily eg spinach, pumpkin leaf, etc.
  • Take a cup of fresh orange juice daily.

• Some highly recommended foods, fruits and vegetables for sickle cell disease sufferers

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  • Bananas, Oranges, Avocado Pear, whole Coconut
  • Plantain
  • Spinach leaf, Pumpkin leaf (ugu), Cabbage, Celery leaf, Parsley leaf, Fresh tomatoes.
  • Red meat, Fish, Chicken, Eggs
  • Yoghurt
  • Yam, Sweet potatoes
  • Yam flour (Amala, Poundo)
  • Local Rice (e.g offada Rice)
  • Kidney Beans (Red beans) and white Beans
  • Whole wheat

• NOTE; this does not mean you shouldn't eat other foods, these were highly recommended because of their high nutritional content.

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