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What You Need to Know if You are Living with G6PD Deficiency

Foods and medicines to avoid if you have G6PD deficiency

Most of the time, people with G6PD deficiency are not affected as long as they avoid certain foods and medicines that cause damage to red blood cells. Examples of such foods and medicines include the following:

Foods to be avoided:
Fava beans
Medicines to be avoided:
A list of medicines to avoid and medicines that should be used with caution in people with G6PD deficiency can be found on these websites: www.stjude.org/g6pd and https://www.ihtc.org/G6PD


Chemicals to be avoided:
Naphthalene (an ingredient found in moth balls) 

Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) is an enzyme

G6PD normally protects red blood cells from damage. Red blood cells deliver oxygen from the lungs to other parts of the body. Some people do not have enough of the G6PD enzyme to protect their red blood cells, and this condition is called G6PD deficiency.

People with G6PD deficiency are at higher risk for red blood cell damage, especially after they are take certain medicines or eat some foods. As a result, red blood cells may be destroyed and this causes a problem called hemolytic anemia which will need to be treated by a doctor.

G6PD deficiency is caused by inherited differences in the G6PD gene; males inherit the gene from their mother and females inherit one copy from each parent. Because this happens in your DNA, G6PD deficiency is a life-long condition. Some people may have a mild form of G6PD deficiency and others may have a more severe form.

Testing for G6PD deficiency

There are two different ways to test for G6PD deficiency: a gene test of your DNA and a blood test for enzyme activity. You may have one or both of these tests done.

G6PD gene testing:

The part of DNA that instructs how well G6PD enzymes will work is called the G6PD gene.

Differences in your DNA that make up the G6PD gene can affect how well your red blood cells will react in certain times of stress. By testing your DNA (with a gene test), differences may be found that can predict how well your G6PD enzyme works. People who have one or 2 non-working copies of the G6PD gene may have G6PD deficiency.

 G6PD enzyme activity testing:

A blood test can find G6PD deficiency. This test measures the activity of G6PD enzymes in the blood. People with low G6PD activity have G6PD deficiency.

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