Need to get my ferritin levels up, can anyone help me?

[Belalf]

Could anyone tell me a very good iron supplement to take that comes without all the nasty side effects. My ferritin is at 20 ngml pretty low and im feeling terrible 😴😥.

Thank you.

[Nackapan]

I take ferrous fumerate 210mg. My Gp prescribed a higher amount but I couldn't tolerate it.

Solgar gentle iron

Spartone

All iron supplements have some side effects

When on iron your doctor needs to know.

Your bloods are usually done 3 monthly to monitor.

You can overdose on iron

Spartone is a sachet that has 5mg in

A multivit usually has 14mg in

Solgar 20mg.

Tiur ferritin is on the low side but deemed in the normal range.

Have you had a full

iron panel done?

Request all this from Gp. Dinr get fobbed off.

Have you another level fone at a different time t8 compare. Different people are fine at different levels.

Also get your thyroid tested .

Your Gp has a duty of care .

See another Gp if they are not treating tour concerns seriously.

[Belalf in reply to Nackapan]

My GP wouldnt run any tests because my full bloodcount was fine yet i am still displaying all the symptoms. I went down my own root and got my bloods done private by thriva and im scheduled to get them repeated to see if theres any improvment in the next 12 weeks. When life goes back to normal i will be changing my GP and going in with all my test results! I will explain i have got no where with my current doctor, dispite feeling unwell and being told its all i my head. Thyroid tested and results all optimal so thats one thing ruled out. Thank yoy for your reply

[Nackapan in reply to Belalf]

Yes good to change Gp if possible and start afresh when you can.

Remember Gps are limited in their expertise so always ask for referrals. T C

[Gambit62 Administrator]

please note that whilst ferritin is generally a good indicator of iron status there have been instances where using it as the only indicator has resulted in iron poisoning

[Belalf in reply to Gambit62]

Im not sure what to do. Im sure my iron is low enough to need more. Transferrin saturation is 23% and serum iron 14 pmol alongside ferritin level of 21? I could begin with a small dose?

[Hidden]

Do you know your level of serum iron? Do you know your transferrin saturation? I ask because you need to know all of these levels as well as your ferritin level to know your overall iron status within your body.

I have problems absorbing iron (some people with PA do) and this may be due to stomach acid levels as iron needs an acidic environment for absorption. I had to have an iron infusion to get my levels up. They went up to 422 (400 is the max for men) but this was done under medical supervision at hospital. Within 4 weeks the level fell to 177 and apparently this isn’t unusual. My gastro doc said I would need to keep supplementing to keep my levels up. Note both my serum iron BBC and T sats were also below the minimum which is why I needed the infusion.

I take 3 sachets of spatone each day and have my levels checked every 6 months.

This keeps my ferritin at around 170 and my T sats just under mid range and my serum iron still at the bottom of the range.

Iron levels are apparently complex even for drs according to my gastro.

My suggestion is you get all your iron levels checked and the consider whether supplementation is appropriate. If you go down that route please check your levels again after 3 months.

[Belalf in reply to Hidden]

Hi. Thanks for your reply. My serum iron is 14.1 and transferrin saturation is 23%. Is this low with a level of 21 ferritin? Ive had my thyroid tested and it came back as optimal. I have all symptoms of low iron the breathlessness comes and goes its awful, i have lots of other symptoms aswell.

[Gambit62 Administrator in reply to Belalf]

I'm not a medic. Have you managed to speak to your GP about the results?

[Hidden in reply to Belalf]

Your iron levels sound good just your ferritin a bit low which is different from me. I’d be delighted to have that level of serum iron. You need to establish why your ferritin (your iron stores) are at that level and you need to see a GP or gastroenterologist for that.

[Ghound]

Hi, sorry to hear you're feeling so rotten, in the past I've had very low ferritin and it was really unpleasant !

Can only tell you my experience, I'm sure everyone is different.

Like many, I find iron preparations very difficult to tolerate.

I wanted to go with the more "gentle" products but realised it would take too long to increase my iron levels, so I took ferrous sulphate or fumarate but started on a very low dose on alternate days.

I was able to gradually increase this to the dose recommended for treatment of anaemia because luckily my body seems to develop a "tolerance" for it and then I don't have the bad side effects.

Good luck finding something which works for you and hope you feel better soon ! X