Latest iron results advice needed

[sbadd]

Ok so my latest results for iron

Results on 19/8/19

Ferritin was 74 range 30-300

My ferritin seems to have dropped? No action taken

Still trying to get to bottom of increased heart rate ?

[sbadd]

Any advice?

[humanbean]

Results :

Serum iron 11 (11 - 27) 0% of the way through the range

Transferrin 33 (20 - 45) 52% of the way through the range

Transferrin Saturation 17 (15 - 55) 5% of the way through the range

Ferritin 47 (30 - 200) 10% of the way through the range

Optimal results according to this link :

rt3-adrenals.org/Iron_test_...

Serum Iron should be 55% - 70% of the way through the range, higher end for men.

So, given the range you have supplied for your serum iron your result should be between 19.8 and 22.2. Yours is far too low, suggesting that you need more iron.

Your Transferrin is approx mid-range so it doesn't give any clues one way or the other.

Transferrin Saturation should be between 35% and 45% , higher end for men. Your result is far too low indicating that you need more iron.

Ferritin ideally should be mid-range or a little bit over. So, with the range you've supplied your ferritin should be around 115 - 130 (ish). Yours is clearly far too low, suggesting that you need more iron.

So, apart from the Transferrin Saturation your other results are clearly showing that your iron is too low. If I was in your shoes I would supplement.

However, I don't know where you live so I don't know what options are open to you. I also have no idea whether you've tried iron and can cope with supplementing or whether you struggle with it. All these things can be relevant when choosing to supplement (or what to supplement).

This document by helvella is worth reading :

dropbox.com/s/g8y4e7alm5ow0...

If you want to improve your iron with food, this website is worth visiting :

dailyiron.net/

Quite a few people on this forum have improved their iron by eating 200g of liver once a week. Other alternatives are black pudding and liver-rich pate.

If you want to take iron supplements then you need to know how to do it safely.

If you live in the UK then you can pay for private iron testing using a finger-prick test :

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

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

Note that there are often special offers on some tests on Thursdays. It is worth registering with the different testing companies listed on the Thyroid UK website so that you get informed of special offers by email.

[sbadd in reply to humanbean]

Thank you, I'm in Australia I have tried supplements before some I can tolerate others I can't, I will speak to my cardiologist today as too what to do as ferritin was 74 , then 5 weeks later 47, I just wanted to confirm what i was thinking, doct just says atm to keep an eye on it?

[humanbean in reply to sbadd]

This is just anecdotal, but when my iron gets low I get chest pain and palpitations, also tachycardia (very fast heart rate). So maintaining my iron at optimal levels (or as close as I can get to optimal) is vital for my comfort. I also struggle to make it upstairs when my iron is low, get brain fog, can't think.

Good levels of iron are also essential for helping the body to convert T4 to T3.

restartmed.com/hypothyroidi...

I couldn't cope with such low levels of iron as you have, but we're all different.

[sbadd in reply to humanbean]

Yes I'm not coping feel spacey, can't think and feel like I'm on a boat, and tachy, feel like a rag doll

[humanbean in reply to sbadd]

Then tell the doctor who said "let's keep an eye on it" that you want to actually improve your iron, not just watch it being low or getting lower. He/she doesn't have to live with low iron and may not even know how awful it makes people feel.

[sbadd in reply to humanbean]

Yes I need to know why it's dropping as Dec last year was fine then Jan 6 loading doses b12, by April serum was 8 ferritin 56, was put on supplements for a short period of 6 weeks which serum came up to 11.9 and ferritin was on 90's, but doct then stopped as ferritin had increased, but now recent test shows this??

[humanbean in reply to sbadd]

My iron drops like a stone if I stop my maintenance dose. I've never found out why. I just live with it and do my best to maintain.

Six weeks of iron supplementation is not very long. When my iron was low I ended up taking iron supplements for close to two years to get my ferritin up to optimal. My serum iron was still only 20% of the way through the range. I'm not saying that has any relevance to you. Iron often takes quite a long time to get to optimal. But anyone who is supplementing needs to test regularly because going over optimal should be strenuously avoided. Iron is poisonous in overdose.

[sbadd in reply to humanbean]

Thankyou