IRON TABLETS OFF GP -Lots of horrid little E numbers 😨👎

[Rmichelle]

Morning guys hope you are all keeping warm,❄ ive been trying lots of different iron preps over the last few months in my battle against iron defiency😕 and to no avail most of them have played havoc with my tummy due to my hiatul hernia, ( hopefully getting IV infusion now , due to being celiac too😊)

Anyway on to my point!, the last lot i was prescribed was a brand of ferrous gluconate which after carefully observing the ingredients....full of nasty E numbers! 4 of them, i done some research and all of these e's have very concerning side effects, from asthma, hyperactivity, respiratory probs the list is never ending and not to mention 3 of these numbers being banned in America, Canada, Sweden and many more, its shocking we have to take such rubbish in our bodies and risk these side effects....i know everything has a risk but do these manufacturers really need to put all this harmful risky stuff in, iv'e refused to take these and have gone back to my usual floravital liquid until i see gp next week and discuss infusion. I just thought what does other people think of these ingredients just to make the tablets look more pretty red and be preserved longer.👎xx

[bantam12]

Why don't you try Better You oral iron spray, its absorbed in the mouth so doesn't cause stomach problems.

[Rmichelle]

Iv'e heard lots of people mention this in passing but sort of turned a blind eye as i need something strong, gp is looking towards iv infusion now what with hernia and celiac but in the meantime i will look at this spray, is it Amazon Bantum?

[bantam12 in reply to Rmichelle]

My husband has been using the spray and it's keeping his levels up, he has multiple health issues and needs transfusions when his iron crashes so it works for him.

You can buy it straight from Better You.

[Rmichelle in reply to bantam12]

Thankyou i am on it now.😊

[BadHare]

Have you tried ferrous sulphate for prescription?

I top this up with a half dose single Floradix tablet, or sometimes just take 2 of these.

[Rmichelle in reply to BadHare]

Tried all of them and they aggravate and leave me in pain, ferrous fummerate also contain e numbers too as per the redness of the tablet but did not read the ingredients back then, im going for iv infusion. Thankyou, floravital is great but sadly it just keeps my levels from dropping further, i take a double dose of that.xx

[BadHare in reply to Rmichelle]

Ferrous fumerate is an industrial biproduct, not a natural form of iron, so it disagrees with most people.

The form in Floradix is gluconate (though I'm sure it says biglycinate on my box of tablets). Perhaps your GP is able to prescribe this after your infusion.

Have you tried avoiding foods high in phytates when you take your iron, & eating something containing vitamin C? I leave a gap of a few hours between eating anything else other than fruit, to avoid anything interfering with absorption.

[Rmichelle in reply to BadHare]

Thankyou badhare, ive tried lots of tablets and liquid, fumerate and sulphate and lastly gluconate but he did say that tablets stay in the digestive tract longer for it too upset, so ive gone back to floravital which is liquid form of gluconate.

I am still eating liver, spinach but a year longer nothing is working, i dare say the prescriptive meds would work but because of my hernia it causes chaos with it , so gp said next step infusion,.x😊

[SeasideSusie Remembering]

I just thought what does other people think of these ingredients just to make the tablets look more pretty red and be preserved longer

I'm with you here. I've never understood why these useless ingredients are included. Yes, they need certain things to make the tablet, etc, but there's no need for colours and other totally useless ingredients. People who need medication are sick enough, we certainly don't need rubbish harmful ingredients to make us even worse.

[Rmichelle in reply to SeasideSusie]

I agree ss, why put other harmful ingredients in there and put us at more risk, we all know why gps dish these tablets out because they are cheaply made and the infusions are expensive, why not just make the tablet and whatever colour it comes out then leave it, i don't mind having a more dirty coloured tablet, who cares if it does not smell as appealing aslong as it does what its set out tp do.😊

[MaisieGray]

I doubt the reason a colourant is used to make the tablets look more pretty. It may be a dose identifier for instance, and/or can be a natural and harmless ingredient such as beetroot in the case of red colour. Tablets absolutely require excipients in their manufacture , for many reasons beyond simply being a very necessary bulking agent to the tiny amount of active ingredient. A tablet simply couldn't be formed without adequate bulk, whilst others need glidants, retarders, , something to make the tablet break down or hold together..... You asked what do members think of these ingredients, but haven't named them - which are you referring to specifically?

[Rmichelle in reply to MaisieGray]

Hi there i understand what you are saying about imgredients being needed in some tablets but its such a shame we do not have a choice really get better or die, i do not have the packet now as i chose not to take them as looking into it i did not want to take something that could put me at more risk, of more symptons, i should have kept the packet but it went straight in the bin!! 😊

[MaisieGray in reply to Rmichelle]

I get your concerns. 🙂 But if you're familiar with any of the LDN fora, you'll be aware of how the matter of excipients consumes the waking hours of many of those taking it - far more it can seem, than the drug itself or the disorder for which they are taking it - even though LDN, (in the UK and US at least) like any other licensed treatment, is compounded by expert qualified pharmacists into the prescription requirements, and even though the active source ingredient is likewise manufactured to controlled standards. Such is the scale of the unrest, many of the US members often assert that this or that pharmacy isn't "any good" at compounding LDN - despite them happily taking their other compounded drugs from the self same pharmacy and self same pharmacists using the self same methods ... It seems that rather than a folie à deux, there appears to be a wider Internet-driven phenomenon emerging of what might be called folie à forum; and the excipient-worrying amongst LDN users has reached such epic proportions that the Chief Pharmacist of the main UK compounder of LDN, felt driven to put in print his frustrations, part of which reads:

"Let me be absolutely clear - before worrying about trace micrograms of lactose that may or may not be in a product, and worrying about "just having pure naltrexone powder" - do you stop to think how old that "pure naltrexone powder" is? Where has it been stored? Who verified that product? Where was it manufactured and does it have a certificate of analysis? Is there a governmental agency providing oversight of this process? Is it actually possible to measure 3mg of powder into a capsule accurately? How long till that does bad? What about bacteria? What about when it is warm or humid? Medicines are something to be taken seriously ........... The standards in the UK far exceed many international standards for this sort of activity in the unlicensed sector. If patients choose to be caught up in a maelstrom of social media hype and over exaggeration .............. then they are free to do so."

Even though it is specific to LDN compounding, it has wider relevance to your more general concerns about the use of active ingredients alone vs those compounded with excipients. I guess that like everything in life, it's always a balance between what we'd like, what we need, what will benefit or might disadvantage or harm us, practicalities, and cost.

I hope you are able to access a source of iron that suits and benefits you. 🙂

[MissGrace]

The spray is good and even tastes nice. In terms of tablets etc. whilst pharmaceuticals are big business, don’t expect medicines to be about what is good for you. When Fleming discovered penicillin, he didn’t use it to make a fortune, he used it to make people well. Imagine if they discover a great new antibiotic now - they’ll make as much money as they can and tough if you can’t afford it. Big Pharma push our medications that often do more harm than good, they lie about side effects, charge the NHS a fortune for some medications and ruin people’s lives and get away with it. Look at the vaginal mesh scandal, the dreadful effects of OxyContin and the like in US (supposedly not addictive - yeah, right!) etc. They aren’t there to help us. It’s all about profit. (I’ll get off my soap box for today now!)

[Rmichelle in reply to MissGrace]

Lol i agree with everything you have said😊 it's good to have a rant.x

[Angel_of_the_North]

Most prescription meds are full of what seem to be unnecessary, nasty excipients, colours and fillers. I think the standards aren't as high as for OTC vitamins supplements. So you either take what is prescribed or pay more for better quality.

[Rmichelle in reply to Angel_of_the_North]

You are right, im double dosing on my otc floravital but at £18 for a big bottle its gone in a flash. 😊

[MissFG]

I use Spatone Liquid Iron off Amazon. It’s gentle on your stomach as I have bad leaky gut and it’s gluten free. I have the apple flavour which tastes like apple juice.

I started taking two a day to get my iron levels up as recommended for pregnant ladies and the elderly. The after two weeks took it down to one sachet daily. If I didn’t have these I’d take the Better You spray as I have the high dose B12 as it works very well and avoids the stomach.

Spatone Range

Spatone Original (14 day and 28 day).

Ingredients: 100% natural water with a high content of iron sulphate.

Spatone Apple (28 day).

Ingredients: 100% natural iron rich water, apple concentrate (100% natural source), vitamin C (ascorbic acid), preservative, potassium sorbate.

[Rmichelle]

Aww thankyou but i am very iron defiecient and did try spatone around 8 months ago but its not strong enough to raise my levels as gp thinks i have a absorption problem to do with celiac disease , ive been referred to gi and have had to wait a longtime for this appt , ive been told i will probalby have to have a iv infusion now, i have gone back to floravital which is good on the stomach but again like spa tone its not strong enough eith double dosing and its expensive.

Im interested in this spray though...is it from amazon?

[Rmichelle]

I will l, someone has already told me about the yellowcard system, i did not know it excisted before.😊

[Kes8]

Just to add not all e-numbers are bad after all vitamin C is an e-number E300.

[Rmichelle in reply to Kes8]

I did not know that!!😕