Question:
MY WBC COUNT KEEPS DROPING. DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY IDEA WHY THIS MAY HAPPEN.

I AM 5 MONTHS POST SURGERY WBC'S WERE NORMAL BEFORE SURGERY SLIGHTLY LOW AFTER SURGERY.NOW EVEN LOWER.    — pamela H. (posted on July 13, 2003)

July 13, 2003
I suggest you do a search on google or yahoo for low white blood cells. It seems that this could be a serious problem if your levels remain low. White blood cells help your body to fight infections. When there are not enough white blood cells in the blood, you may get an infection more easily. You should take special precautions to avoid infections when your white blood cell count is low. There is lots of research that indicates certain foods and food components can help control blood levels of white cells and their potency. There are some foods that help to stimulate the immune system that you will want to include in your diet, and other foods that you will want to avoid. Give your immune system a boost by including lots of yogurt that contains live active cultures of Lactobacillus Bulgaricus and Strepococcus thermophilus. Some other specific foods to include are garlic, foods high in zinc such as oysters, pot roast, dark meat turkey and pumpkin and squash seeds (or make sure your multi vitamin contains zinc), and shitake mushrooms. Other immune boosting foods are fruits and vegetables. They may not increase your white cell count, but they will make the white cells you have stronger. The best choices are the deep green and orange ones like spinach and carrots, melon and oranges. Too much fat, particularly polyunsaturated vegetables oils, adversely effect immune system strength. On the other hand, fish oil can boost it. Continue to take your multivitamin (with zinc). One of the long term effects of a low white blood count can be a higher incidence of illness. Speak to your doctor to find out other medical ramifications of the problem. You may also benefit from talking to a registered dietitian. Your local hospital should be able to help you locate one, or you could email the American Dietetic Association at [email protected] and ask them to send to you a list of registered dietitians in your area. Be sure to follow up with your physician to monitor your condition. There may be something more than lack of nutrition going on. Best of luck to you.
   — adeas

July 13, 2003
A low blood count can be related to immune problems, and unfortunately I usually see it when transcribing reports for cancer patients. That doesn't mean you have cancer!! It is just one of the most common reasons. Another can be related to nutrition - here is a link you can read more about. Since you had a healthy level before, considering the timing, it may just be simple nutrition: http://www.parentsplace.com/expert/nutritionist/qas/0,,166624_105062,00.html
   — bethybb