Ferritin, folate, vit D and vit B12 help please

[Emerald21]

I have the results below for ferritin, folate, vitamin D and B12 below. I take 800iu vitamin D and I have been taking this for 4 years. GP has been adding this and taking it off again a few times. Practice put "no action required" for the ferritin result and the GP told me my folate was only a few points below range. Current symptoms are constipation, sometimes stool with undigested fat in it

Joint aches

Dry skin on arms, legs, front of body, face

Dry eyes

Poor digestion, tummy rumbling over anything I put in it

Tiredness

Hair loss

Hair growing in male pattern on face, body and legs (polycystic ovaries confirmed but not treated)

Heavy and irregular periods

"Zapping" sensation in head

Memory loss and clumsiness

Loss of bladder control

Muscle twitches

Itchy skin

Back pain (scoliosis confirmed due to right rib sticking out)

Breathlessness, needing to sigh often

Cold clammy feeling to feet

Feeling cold

Whooshing sound in ears even when not doing anything at all

Palpitations

Thanks for feedback.

Serum ferritin 11 (15 - 150)

Serum folate 2.35 (4.60 - 18.70)

Serum vitamin B12 208 (180 - 900)

25 hydroxy vitamin D2 0

25 hydroxy vitamin D3 50.1

Total 25 OH vitamin D 50.1

(<25 severe vitamin D deficiency. Patient may require pharmacological preparations

25 - 50 vitamin D deficiency. Supplementation is indicated

50 - 75 vitamin D may be suboptimal, and long-term may lead to clinical effects. Advise on safe sun exposure and diet. Supplementatio may be indicated

>75 adequate vitamin D)

[Singoutloud]

Your doc needs to go to specsavers if he can't see that there is a problem with these results. Either that or back to med school. There are reasons for blood ranges you know.

Ferritin & folate are both below range.

Vit d is woefully low for the fact that you've been supplementing for four years and b12 is close to bottom of range.

I Would suggest further testing for pernicious anaemia based on these results and symptoms so your doctor needs to test for Intrinsic factor antibodies. A change of Doctor may also be in order before he actively kills you.

[gabkad in reply to Singoutloud]

Singoutloud, more like death by supervised neglect.

[Singoutloud in reply to gabkad]

You're so right, especially when to consider the Thyroid results from emeralds other post as well. Totally shocking behaviour from the GP and they're supposed to do no harm!!

[gabkad in reply to Singoutloud]

There's a difference between malpractice (active) and negligence (doing nothing). So 'do no harm' refers to something active. Doing nothing does not strictly qualify in the 'do no harm' department. But it's also very bad. This doctor may have a focus problem. Mentally disorganized/otherwise distracted.

I went to a rheumatologist way back and she eventually confessed that her care of my problem was negligent because she was having her own problems with endometriosis or something like that which ended up necessitating a hysterectomy. Well, that's great, right? I was on disability at the time and was cut off due to inadequate information. It never occurred to her to order imagining studies of my neck. She just assumed because I had not reported having been in a car accident that I didn't have herniated discs. Wrong assumption and assumptions are bad medicine. This put me into a crushingly difficult situation what with supporting two children not just myself. We all could have ended up homeless. At least she wasn't arrogant.

So doctors have their own problems too and who knows, maybe the GP referred to above is distracted by his or her own. Time to find someone else if at all possible. Good thing this forum exists.

[bluebug]

The vitamin D supplements you can buy yourself and most CCGs/healthboards state at your level you should buy them yourself. This is why your GP can get away with randomly stoping them. Get yourself some 5,000IU D3 tablets and take one everyday for 12 weeks with lunch or dinner, after 12 weeks retest your 25 OH vitamin D. You will need to pay for a test from City Assays at about £30. Don't take any D3 24 hours before the test. In addition buy some magnesium citrate and vitamin K2-MK7 as these are cofactors. No doctor will prescribe or tell you to these cofactors as they don't know about nutrition. Do this ASAP as this is the first thing you can sort out and buy everything online e.g. from Amazon. Both pharmacies and health supplement shops frequently talk nonsense when it comes to vitamin D as they don't keep up with the research.

In the case of your vitamin B12, folate and ferritin change GPs and go to your new GP with the test results. You don't need to give a reason to change GPs anymore. In the case of the iron ask for a haemoglobin blood test. The GP can ask for this to be tested alone instead of a full blood count. Low ferritin often leads to iron deficiency aneamia. Many GPs are too thick to realise this. Make sure you tell the GP you have heavy periods.

You should then be prescribed vitamin B12, folate and iron supplements. If you aren't prescribed it just ask the new GP politey and firmly to do so. Point out you are of child bearing age and while you are unlikely to get pregnant it is still possible.

Also mention to the new GP that you have PCOS and want it treated. The common treatment for that is the combined pill. You can also be put on metformin, the diabetic drug. You don't want this as it uses up vitamin B12. If the pill doesn't work and the GP needs to try at least 3 different ones first, then ask for a referral to gynecology. If the GP can't put you on the combined pill due to weight and blood pressure then demand a referral.

The reason to change GPs is that it is clear your current GP thinks they can get away with ignoring you and requesting things will not get you anywhere. In fact you will have to complain about him/her to get anything done and they will just remove you from the list for doing so due to "patient and doctor relationship breakdown" or more commonly a patient who realised the GP is pulling the wool over their eyes as they don't want to spend the budget they get on them.

Finally once you have your prescriptions come back here and start a new thread for further advice on your vitamin B12, folate and ferritin levels. As sometimes the amount or kind of vitamins/iron prescribed is the wrong. You want the prescriptions so the NHS will test you.

[tingles]

Hi there,no wonder you feel awful! I agree pretty much with the post above. Your B12 levels are dangerously dangerously low, they should be well over 500, when mine were 196 I also had that terrible sign was unable to breathe properly and had no energy, my ferritin is also about five and nothing I've done has been able to raise this. I doctor completely ignored me and my symptoms I have a thyroid condition underactive and I've had to take matters into my own hands. Not that I'm advising you to do this, it is much better if you can get your GP to properly treat you and I think to do this you're going to have to change GPs. I know self inject my B12 and take folate when I do so. I think a change of GP has got to be on the cards for you and then keep reading here and educating yourself, your health is far too important to just be turned away by the doctor

[bluebug]

I should add if your new GP doesn't prescribe you at least iron and folate supplements and attempts to deal with your PCOS you need to change to a third practice. However in that time you will have to self treat the vitamin and mineral deficiencies so come back here and start a new thread for advice.

[Katepots]

Crickey you're so low in everything your Dr should be sacked, find a new one and supplement everything. No wonder you're feeling so awful.

You need to take vitamin D in a gel or liquid form rather than tablet as it's easier for the body to absorb. Also I take K2 with mine, here's an explanation.

articles.mercola.com/sites/...

You're like me we need to live in the sun!

Definitely get tested for intrinsic factor and check out the pernicious anaemia site.

[wildpoppy]

Hello

Just wanted to chime in here, as I think you should get tested for coeliac disease, just to rule it out.... Those symptoms could have been MY list from 5 years ago, before my own diagnosis... xx

[SeasideSusie Remembering]

Emerald21 I agree with everything said, and I think Bluebug should be cloned and we all have a Bluebug to accompany us to our appointments and advocate for us.

The only thing I would add is that I would suggest going over to the Pernicious Anaemia Society forum here on Health Unlocked with your Folate and B12 results for further advice

healthunlocked.com/pasoc

[SlowDragon Ambassador]

Even if you test negative for coeliac, very many of us with autoimmune issues find going gluten free makes significant improvement.

But you also still need to improve Thyroid results with dose increase and vitamin levels with supplements, as suggested

PCOS is strongly suspected of being autoimmune and is very often linked to also having Hashimoto's

See/read Isabella Wentz - the Thyroid Pharmacist, Chris Kresser, Amy Myers and many others on the hidden food intolerances (usually gluten) as links/causes of autoimmune problems

[Heloise]

Hi Emerald, those few points below range are catastrophic when you are supposed to be in at least mid to upper range. stopthethyroidmadness.com/r...

stopthethyroidmadness.com/l...

But finding out why you are low is important. Besides low thyroid function there is the matter of acid and enzymes. We need good stomach acid and enzymes to break down the nutrients and especially important for minerals. We also need proleolytic enzymes. We lose the production of enzymes as we age so that supplement may be very useful. They are safe as well.

Our problems go beyond our thyroid, we have a medically deficient professional paradigm which will probably not change so gear up.