Iron/ferretin

I have normal iron levels but bottom ferretin levels, I take a suppliment with iron and b-vitamines. Mayby that just raise my ironlevels and not ferretin, is it different suppliments for iron and ferritin? Hope someone understand my question Don't wamt higher iron levels thats bad.

[bluebug]

Nope it is the same supplement.

What you have is normal BTW. Also be aware you can have a high/normal ferritin level and have iron deficiency anaemia.

Does it say on the bottle how much elemental iron is in the supplement?

To raise ferritin levels you need to consume a lot more iron than your body needs just to survive. The RDA of iron e.g. survival level for men and post menopausal women is 8mg and for pre-menopausal women just under 15mg. However only about 10-20% of iron in supplements is absorbed.

The recommended treatment for low ferritin levels is 1 ferrous fumerate tablet twice a day. (This has been 65-70mg of iron in it.) Take it 4 hours away from thyroid medication and two hours away from any other food or supplements to avoid interactions. You can either take it with a vitamin C tablet or some orange juice as this maximise absorption. You can get packs of 84 tablets from pharmacies in Boots, Tescos, Asda or online from Amazon - just make sure you are buying it from a pharmacy. If the pharmacist questions you why you need it just state "I have low iron levels and have been advised to take it." Once you have finished the pack wait 7 days and have a ferritin test.

[bluebug]

By the way if you take more than 2 supplements a day you risk raising your haemoglobin level.

Link for information: patient.info/doctor/non-ana...

[Hidden in reply to bluebug]

Ok, thanks, the bottle says 20ml=20mg iron and 20ml=2ug B12. So 20mg iron are to little if I want raise my ferretin?? I will check the tablets. Im just afraid to get to high Hb. Its not easy to get a ferretin test here..

[bluebug in reply to Hidden]

Yep 20mg is too little.

Unfortunately unless you are below range doctors don't repeat ferritin tests.

[Jillkh]

Not wanting to hijack this thread but.... I have tried taking Iron supplements but they give me such stomach ache and make me constipated ( sorry for the detail) any ideas how to avoid this ... Other than not taking them

[Pastille in reply to Jillkh]

There is Solgar gentle iron, or you could use spatone, which is not very high in elemental iron but a few sachets maybe? Easy on the stomach

[Jillkh in reply to Pastille]

Thank you. Will try this

[Angel_of_the_North in reply to Pastille]

I found that Spatone is incredibly expensive as you need several sachets a day - taking two a day for a couple of months made my ferritin drop from bottom of range to under range.

[Pastille in reply to Angel_of_the_North]

Oh dear! Well mine didn't drop but my bank balance did. I used them for a while as I was wary of taking a lot of iron all of a sudden, but I took 3 sachets a day. You do get 3 boxes for the price of 2 in most places but I was much happier to switch to ferrous fumarate for the difference in price. Big difference. Yes I have heard others didn't do too well on it but then some have so always worth a try if it's an option

[hunny59 in reply to Angel_of_the_North]

Really? I found my ferritin went from 55 to 70 in two months taking one sachet a day

[Angel_of_the_North in reply to hunny59]

Really. Mine fell from 15 to 11.

[judburke in reply to Angel_of_the_North]

If your iron and/or ferritin are dropping despite taking supplements then you should tell your doctor as you might have a gut absorption problem. Damage caused by Coeliac can do this and low iron might be the only symptom. Have a look at Coeliac uk for more information. It can be typical for some of us to have more than one auto-immune problem

[Hidden in reply to judburke]

Hey, thank you. I don't have coeliac what the doctor says, have blood testa for that. But maybe it's worth trying to go off it to see, I feel very bad.... Maybe I have some more autoimmune disprder, strange synptoms....

[judburke in reply to Hidden]

You are welcome. How long ago were you tested for Coeliac? It can be slow to develop. I had tests that were clear 3 years before I was finally diagnosed. Are you taking any medicines for stomach issues for example for acid? Apparently some medicines interfere with absorption of nutrients.

Also have you had other key vitamins tested such as B12, D3? These also need to be at good levels for you to feel well - -not just at the bottom of the range

[Angel_of_the_North in reply to judburke]

I have nothing wrong with me according to all the gastro tests. Ferrous fumarate raised my iron, but slowly. Spatone just did nothing when my iron was falling anyway (for reasons the NHS can't fathom). If there are iron eating parasites that don't show on a SIBO test, I suspect I have them.