IDEAL FERRITIN AND SERUM IRON LEVEL

[Clara62]

Hello, I would like to know what kind of levels are considered optimal for a person with Hypothyroidism. My numbers are:

ferritin 66 ug/l ( 40- 250 range)

Serum iron level 16.9 umo/l ( 11-36 range).

Thank you.

[humanbean]

ferritin 66 ug/l ( 40- 250 range) ***This is 12% of the way through the range

Serum iron level 16.9 umo/l ( 11-36 range) ***This is 23.6% of the way through the range

According to this link :

rt3-adrenals.org/Iron_test_...

Serum iron should be 55% - 70% of the way through the range (higher end of that for men), which would mean your result needs to be between 24.75 - 28.5.

People on the forum have found that a ferritin level of around mid-range or a little bit higher is where they feel best, but we are all different. Mid-range (50% of the way through the range) with the range you've given would give a level of 145.

In other words, your iron and ferritin levels are very poor!

[Clara62 in reply to humanbean]

Thank you humanbean, that is what I suspected but couldn’t find useful info about it. I think some liquid iron supplements could help ( apparently they work better for people with constipation like me) since I don’t eat meat, I eat fish though. 🙏

[Clara62 in reply to Clara62]

I’ve just read something about tibc levels in the link you posted, that when it is low there is no capacity for additional iron ... I am not sure I understand correctly the meaning... in fact my tibc is 42 and the range is between 53 and 85. I would be grateful if you can help me understand. Thank you!

[humanbean in reply to Clara62]

Regarding TIBC :

On this page : stopthethyroidmadness.com/i...

is the following :

My TIBC is low as is my iron. What does that mean for me? TIBC stands for Total Iron Binding Capacity, and it’s basically telling you how much protein your liver is making in order to envelope and carry that iron around. Typically, if iron is low, TIBC will be higher in the range. So if your TIBC is low, it might mean three things, say literature 1) Your liver needs support! Milk Thistle and Dandelion Root are two supportive supplements. 2) You can’t take the high amounts of iron that others do with low TIBC, since it will be problematic without that protein 3) You’ll need to consider taking lactoferrin with each dose of iron to supply the needed carrying iron. Because of lactoferrin, you might be able to take the higher amounts.

This is also worth reading : stopthethyroidmadness.com/i...

My TIBC is always low in range or under the range, irrespective of how good or bad my iron and ferritin actually are. I tend to worry about serum iron, ferritin, and transferrin saturation. I don't pay much attention to TIBC because I don't think it is telling me much about my iron levels, I think it is telling me my liver could be healthier than it is.

[Clara62 in reply to humanbean]

Thank you very much, will read it! Appreciate your help 🙏

[humanbean in reply to Clara62]

Don't forget to take vitamin C with iron supplements, it helps the body to absorb iron. And be careful of over-doing it with supplementing. Excessive iron in the body is poisonous. Some people find that supplementing iron raises their serum iron more than it raises ferritin, others find the opposite. Once either serum iron or ferritin reaches optimal don't push it higher in the hope of making the other one reach optimal too. Instead, try to find a level of supplementing that maintains your levels as near optimal as you can.

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Anecdote : My ferritin reaches optimal a long time before my serum iron does. I just accept that my serum iron is never optimal and live with it. I supplement one ferrous fumarate 210mg tablet 3 or 4 times a week, spread out through the week to help me maintain my levels as close to optimal as I can. But other people may need more or less or none.

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If you want to do private finger-prick testing on your iron levels then this test is worth doing :

medichecks.com/iron-tests/i...

Further info on Medichecks :

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/testin...

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/testin...

If you are supplementing iron don't leave it months before testing. You need to get some idea of how well you absorb iron, and you can only do that with testing.

[Clara62 in reply to humanbean]

Thank you very much humanbean 🙏