Can Iron deficiency cause AF ?

[sandoval22]

A blood test several months ago showed up low ferritin levels and 3 months after I had my first AF which I had a cardioversion for. Last week I had a new blood test and my ferritin level is exactly the same even after taking iron tablets for 6 months. After doing research I found that low iron is common in Heart failure patients. I should add I've had heart failure 19 years so it seems more likely to me low ferritin has played a part in my AF. Wondered if anyone else has come across this and what they did. Ferritin is not a common blood test on the NHS ; I asked for it to be added, so there could be many who have no idea of their Iron levels.

[jeanjeannie50]

My daughter had just been diagnosed with low iron levels, so I've researched this a little. Heart palpitations are certainly listed as a side effect. It does make you wonder how many people on this forum just need to increase their iron levels to be cured.

NHS link here:

nhs.uk/conditions/iron-defi...

[sandoval22 in reply to jeanjeannie50]

Absolutely. I found out IV infusion is the quickest way if tablets don't work but if the NHS don't oblige it's north of £700. No idea how a 30min IV drip comes to that price !

[jeanjeannie50 in reply to sandoval22]

What a price!!!

My daughter, who'd never had them before, started getting palpitations a few months ago and feeling worn out if she did anything. She soon felt better when prescribed an iron supplement and also introduced apricots and watercress into her daily diet.

I think quite a few people on here have been diagnosed with low iron levels. I'm sure they'll comment soon.

Jean

[10gingercats in reply to jeanjeannie50]

Crikey! There is a lifetime of research for someone to do there.My own complex Afib/iron etc. history for a start would fill one book.

[BobD Volunteer]

AF is much more likely to be caused by the opposite--- Heamachromatosis which is iron overloading, This rare condition can cause lots of organ damage and is not often considered, The only reason I know about it is a memeber of our original forum had it.

[Jalia]

Can I ask what your ferritin level is please !

A few years back a new GP to my practice drew attention to my low levels of ferritin as a possible cause of my tachycardia and exhaustion, the first time this had been highlighted. A few days later I went into fast AF and subsequently cardioverted electrically.. .I then took a course of iron tablets to raise levels.

Your post has set me thinking. I've been taking iron supplements...ferrous fumarate...continuously for about 2 years and am beginning to wonder whether this has contributed to my much reduced AF episodes. I should add that I am taking this under medical supervision after a very slow gastric bleed was diagnosed ( another story...).

Iron supplements should only be taken on medical advice I might add.

[sandoval22]

ferritin level was 9 before taking iron tablets and the same 6 months after. When I was in hospital with AF to my knowledge my iron levels were never checked so maybe we are barking up the wrong tree but according to google there is a correlation.

[Colutd]

I doubt iron deficiency is linked to AF. I have Heamachromatosis which is an overload of iron of which I have to have regular venesections for to lower my iron levels for and I also suffer with AF of which I had an ablation a few years back.

[Hidden]

I doubt it. But sugar will do it. Here is the data I have put together. Try it and see if it works for you.

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After 9 years of trying different foods and logging EVERYTHING I ate, I found sugar (and to a lesser degree, salt – i.e. dehydration) was triggering my Afib. Doctors don't want to hear this - there is no money in telling patients to eat less sugar. Each person has a different sugar threshold - and it changes as you get older, so you need to count every gram of sugar you eat every day (including natural sugars in fruits, etc.). My tolerance level was 190 grams of sugar per day 8 years ago, 85 grams a year and a half ago, and 60 grams today, so AFIB episodes are more frequent and last longer. If you keep your intake of sugar below your threshold level your AFIB will not happen again (easier said than done of course). It's not the food - it's the sugar (or salt - see below) IN the food that's causing your problems. Try it and you will see - should only take you 1 or 2 months of trial-and-error to find your threshold level. And for the record - ALL sugars are treated the same (honey, refined, agave, natural sugars in fruits, etc.). I successfully triggered AFIB by eating a bunch of plums and peaches one day just to test it out. In addition, I have noticed that moderate exercise (7-mile bike ride or 5-mile hike in the park) often puts my Afib heart back in to normal rhythm a couple hours later. Don’t know why – perhaps you burn off the excess sugars in your blood/muscles or sweat out excess salt?? I also found that strenuous exercise does no good – perhaps you make yourself dehydrated?? Also, in addition to sugar, if you are dehydrated - this will trigger AFIB as well. It seems (but I have no proof of this) that a little uptick of salt in your blood is being treated the same as an uptick of sugar - both cause AFIB episodes. (I’m not a doctor – it may be the sugar in your muscles/organs and not in your blood, don’t know). In any case you have to keep hydrated, and not eat too much salt. The root problem is that our bodies are not processing sugar/salt properly and no doctor knows why, but the AFIB seems to be a symptom of this and not the primary problem, but medicine is not advanced enough to know the core reason that causes AFIB at this time. You can have a healthy heart and still have Afib – something inside us is triggering it when we eat too much sugar or get (even a little) dehydrated. Find out the core reason for this and you will be a millionaire and make the cover of Time Magazine! Good luck! - Rick Hyer PS – there is a study backing up this data you can view at: Cardiab.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1475-2840-7-28

[sandoval22]

I live in ketosis so sugar didn't cause my AF but I'm sure it can in others. We are all different so there is no easy answer. In the UK an NHS blood test covers sugar so you would know if your sugar is high but the test doesn't cover ferritin so there will be millions who have no idea what their levels are. There are people saying their AF has gone since taking iron tablets so there may be a link but tablets didn't work for me so I have to consider the IV route. Good luck with no sugar - it's definately the way to go imo.

[Palpman]

My iron levels were to high and the doctors were of the view that it was the cause of my palps SVT and AF.

After some venesections it was back to normal but my arrhythmia is worse than ever.

[sandoval22]

Sorry to hear that palpman. The ranges they use in bio markers are man made and we are all different so maybe we all over analyse the results. I know the pharma co's reduced the cholesterol threshold to sell more statins so who knows what to believe?