A consistently high red blood cell (RBC) count, called erythrocytosis or polycythemia, often means your body isn't getting enough oxygen (hypoxia) and produces more RBCs to compensate, common with lung/heart disease, sleep apnea, or living at high altitudes. Lifestyle factors like smoking or anabolic steroid use, and conditions like dehydration, kidney tumors, or the rare bone marrow disorder Polycythemia Vera can also be culprits, making blood thicker and increasing clot risk.
Not necessarily. While a high red blood cell count can indicate a disease or disorder, it doesn't always mean you have a health condition. Other factors — like living at a high altitude — can also have an impact on your red blood cell count.
Polycythemia vera (PV) is a rare blood disorder in which there is an increase in all blood cells, particularly red blood cells. The increase in blood cells makes your blood thicker and can cause problems with blood flow (circulation).
Medicines that lower the number of red blood cells
If phlebotomy doesn't help enough, these medicines can lower the number of red blood cells in your blood: Hydroxyurea (Droxia, Hydrea, Siklos). Interferon alfa-2b (Intron A). Ruxolitinib (Jakafi).
Conditions affecting the red blood cells, which are tasked with moving oxygen throughout the body, include: Anemia, the most common blood disorder, which is characterized by low levels of red blood cells.
Follow a Mediterranean Style of Eating
Eating a Mediterranean-style diet — rich in fish, fruits and vegetables, nuts, vegetable oils and whole grains — can help prevent heart disease. That makes it a particularly good choice for people with PV, because the cancer causes an overproduction of red blood cells.
Higher red blood cell concentration
The liquid part of blood is called plasma. If plasma gets too low, the red blood cell count seems to go up in a blood sample. This happens with dehydration. It also can happen as a side effect of medicines called diuretics, a common treatment for high blood pressure.
Drugs that can increase the RBC count include:
Symptoms of polycythaemia
Iron is essential for RBC production, while B12 and folate aid in their maturation. Stay Hydrated: Proper hydration is key for maintaining healthy blood volume and circulation. Drinking an adequate amount of water helps optimize the function of your blood cells.
Venesection is the simplest and quickest way of reducing the number of red cells in your blood. It may be recommended if you have polycythaemia vera, a history of blood clots, or symptoms suggesting your blood is too thick.
Mejri discovered that partial sleep deprivation had no significant impact on red blood cell count, hemoglobin levels, or hematocrit during intermittent activity [8].
In some cases, a medicine can cause the immune system to mistake your own red blood cells for foreign substances. The body responds by making antibodies to attack the body's own red blood cells. The antibodies attach to red blood cells and cause them to break down too early.
Conditions that may cause a high red blood cell count can include: Dehydration. Heart disease. Polycythemia vera, a disease which causes your bone marrow to make too many red blood cells.
Erythropoietin (EPO) Erythropoietin is a type of protein called a growth factor. It is used to treat a low number of red blood cells (anaemia) due to cancer or its treatment.
Diseases that cause ongoing inflammation can keep the body from making enough red blood cells. Examples are cancer, HIV/AIDS, rheumatoid arthritis, kidney disease and Crohn's disease. Aplastic anemia. This rare, life-threatening anemia occurs when the body doesn't make enough new blood cells.
There is a significant negative relationship between RBC, Hb, and HCT levels and sleep quality (rRBC = −0.157 pRBC = 0.026; rHb = −0.158 pHb = 0.025; rHCT = −0.175 pHCT = 0.013). Such results suggest that as sleep quality worsens (indicated by higher scores), there is a tendency for haematological levels to decrease.
People who sleep six hours or less may have steeper increases in blood pressure. If you already have high blood pressure, not sleeping well may make your blood pressure worse.
Highlights. Sleep hypopnea is defined as a drop of ≥30% in breathing amplitude and in oxygen saturation >3% (AASMedicine), or >4% (CMMS). This study reveals a systematic bias, with the 3% criterion consistently yielding higher apnea/hypopnea index values.
Typical treatments include:
It may be helpful to eliminate or reduce drinks containing alcohol from the diet, as drinking too much alcohol may lower a person's RBC count.
Care and Treatment
In some cases, your healthcare provider may recommend a phlebotomy. In a phlebotomy, a healthcare provider inserts a needle into one of your veins and removes extra red blood cells. You may need to have multiple phlebotomies until your hemoglobin levels are within a typical range.
Lifestyle Modifications. Along with medical therapy, lifestyle modification can also help to reduce RBC count. Dietary Changes: A healthy diet can play a role in managing RBC count. Including foods rich in iron and folate, such as leafy greens, beans, and lean meats, can support healthy red blood cell production.
Dehydration
Hemoglobin is quantified based on its absorption characteristics. Conditions such as hyperlipidemias, hyperbilirubinemia, a very high white blood cell count, and high serum protein can interfere with this measurement and result in falsely elevated hemoglobin values.