I am beta thalasemmia minor and my iron and ferritin levels are as below
Ferritin-75
Iron serum-53 (27-159 ug/dL)
Iron saturation 17% (15-55%)
My obgyn or family physician have not checked my folate yet and was not prescribed any folate medicines after my miscarriage also.
The prenatals has only 800mcg which is quite low I feel.I was prescribed 5mg few years back by hematologist as i have thalasemmia.Can I continue the same?
Also I am taking slow fe for iron currently,how can i improve my levels and what is optimal level for iron/folate/fettitin?
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I'm so sorry to hear about your miscarriage and the problems that you're having.
Unfortunately, I don't think that forum members here will be able to offer appropriate advice...and hence the lack of replies, so far.
We deal deal pernicious anaemia and the B12 deficiency it causes, which leads to a different type anaemia - macrocytic anaemia - which causes the blood cells to become larger and rounder than normal. Whilst we do discuss iron deficiency anaemia which often arises due to the absorption problems often caused by pernicious anaemia, this is entirely different from the iron issues potentially associated with a blood disorder like beta thalasemmia minor.
It's also not easy to advise about ferritin levels because this is only one part of the iron 'story': when iron disorders are present, a full iron panel is required and the results of each element have to read over and against each other to get a full picture: and this has to be interpreted within the context of your particular medical condition. So just looking at and managing ferritin levels may. It be sufficient in your case.
About the folate - again, it's not possible to comment without knowing what your current folate levels are. 5mg of folate is a high dose and would usually only be prescribed to those with a proven folate deficiency, for a short period of time (3-4 months), followed by a re-testing of folate levels and re-assessment of the dose required. The usual maintenance dose for folic acid is 400mcg, and some don't need to supplement at all once a deficiency has been addressed.
If the prenatal (with the 800mcg of folic acid) has been prescribed for you, then the best advice would be to continue with these...but also ask to have your folate levels checked so you can determine whether this is an appropriate dose for you.
Over supplementation with folate over a period of time can cause some unpleasant side effects so it wouldn't be a good idea to take high dose folate on a 'just-in-case' basis 😉.
Additionally, over supplementing with iron can be dangerous: it can cause iron overload: those with thalassemia are at greater risk of developing iron overload so it's important that you only take iron supplements under direct medical supervision.
Here's a link where you can find more information about iron overload and there are also several iron panel profile tables that may help you interpret full iron panel results. The site's not so easy to negotiate but there's lots of useful information. Also enter 'thalessemia' in the search box - throws up some links that might be useful.
The best idea would be to discuss all this with you doctor (or doctors - assuming you're also under the care of a Haematologist). Ask to have you folate levels checked...along with a full iron panel and full blood count. Hopefully your doctors can then review these and advise about appropriate levels of folic acid and iron. This is particularly important if you are planning a pregnancy 😀.
Finally, sorry that I haven't really been able to answer your questions.
There are other communities within Health Unlocked that deal with blood disorders. Though none are specifically for thalessemia, they do deal with blood disorders so may may be able to offer the sort of support and advice that would help you.
Here's some links to some that may be useful (there may be others - if you click on 'My Hub' at the top of this page, you'll see 'browse communities' - you may be able to spot other communities that you can try 😉):
Thank you so much for your reply.Yes, I will have my doctors check my folate level also during my next visit though they think I am asking too many questions.If they are not interested, I will do it on my own then.I will try posting in other communities too.Vit B12 is 612 so far and I am not on any supplements yet, but want to increase that as well.
Unless you have been dignoased as B12 deficient and have been having B12 injections or high dose supplements (1000mcg), your B12 levels looks excellent (probably towards the top end of whatever the reference range was).
Not sure why you want to increase your B12 level - it's very good already.
It's always worth remembering that over supplementing with some vitamins and minerals can be as bad (or worse) than having too little (though that doesn’t apply to vitamin B12).
About asking questions of your doctors - you just carry on. I can never fathom why doctors seem troubled when patients want to take an active part in their own healthcare.
I thought it should be around 800 to 1000 atleast as i have very severe hair loss too , so thought to increase it with foods and for pregnancy support.Yeah, I hate to be on supplements and really want to get away from these soon once all desired levels are acheived and any deficiencies corrected.
hair loss is a symptom of a number of conditions - including iron deficiency
I really would advice not going for B12 supplements - certainly not high dose supplements - unless you have an absorption problem - whilst B12 isn't toxic - raising serum B12 levels can cause problems and affect the efficiency with which B12 passes from your blood to cells where it is needed.
5mg is a very high dose of folic acid - the dose used to correct an anaemia caused by folate deficiency - I wouldn't recommend it as a long term solution.
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