I have a slight low Iron problem....

[carole]

I have been feeling not so good for the last three months or so, which started with a sore throat that took me ages to recover from, so I opted to have a full blood works done.

I am ever so glad I did, because I have discovered I am a bit low in Iron,I am 12 whereas I should be in the region of 15 to 20, this explains my extreme fatigue, worse than normal, and general feeling of yuckiness.

I am not thrilled that I have to take iron pills for the next three months, but am relieved to get to the bottom of it and beable to do something to fix it.

I intend to add some new things to my diet, I donot eat red meat, as I find it hard to digest, but I am going to have to, also add more citrus fruit to my diet, not a big fan of that either, and some spinach and silverbeet.

I expect there are many of you who have experienced this, so would be grateful for any suggestions to keep my iron intake up, apart from what I already know.

The good news is my cholestroel (sp) is great 3.6, actually has dropped from 4.3 in two years, so I am happy with that, have to keep an eye on it as my mother is very high, but it seems it is hereditary, so I may be fighting a loosing battle here, but one can only try.

[finn's mom]

I was anemic, and, have been just making sure to eat a lot of iron rich food. Spinach is easy for me, though, as it is one of my favorite veggies. Dark greens, the more the better. And, I also take a woman's supplement, and, it has a lot of iron in it. Good luck, I'm sorry I can't offer very much advice!

[carole]

Thanks, you are lucky you love spinach, it is not my favourite, but I do have a nice WWatchers quiche type meal that includes spinach in it, so will make that again, I am just going to have to form a liking for these foods , simple as that, could be worse huh? lol.

[DJFyrewolf36]

Hrm perhaps that could explain whats wrong with me! Ive had this horrid sore throat for a while now and I always feel tired even though I do get enough sleep. Ive already had a full blood workup done but I have to wait for my insurance to reinstate before I can go in and get the results

I hope you get to feeling better!

[kimlovescats]

Try also eating some beans ... kidney beans are good!

[Kater]

Hey Carol,

Actually yes, I do have some knowledge to impart on the subject of anemia...

The type of iron consumed in far more important than the quantity of iron in the diet. Heme iron, from the hemoglobin and myoglobin of animals, is generally well absorbed and unaffected by factors that inhibit iron absorption. Heme iron is taken up by the mucosal cell within the porphyrin ring, protecting the iron from ingredients in the diet that inhibit absorption. Nonheme iron, which makes up about 90% of the iron in the diet is found in nonmeat food sources (including grains, vegetables, fruits, eggs, the nonheme iron of animals and iron supplements) is not well absorbed. In addition, the bioavailability of nonheme iron is generally affected by several factors that enhance or inhibit absorption.
...
The main enhancers of nonheme iron aborption are ascorbic acid (vitamin C) and the "meat factor" – a protein found in fish, poultry and beef that contains amino acids that bind iron to increase it's absorption.

Nutritional Concerns of Women, Second Edition. Dorothy Klimis-Zacas (Ed.)

Basically, if you want to reverse the anemia quickly you need to take a good heme iron supplement, increase your animal protein intake and reduce intake of coffee/tea products. Although spinach contains a lot of iron, the bioavailability is low and the iron is not absorbed well. Polyphenols in coffee and tea are one of the things that inhibit iron absorption. Certain phytates in grains, nuts, legumes and vegetables inhibit iron absorption as well, but they have more going for them nutritionally than coffee or tea.

Great Earth (http://www.greatearth.com) makes one of the best heme iron supplements. If you cannot get this in NZ, I'd be happy to buy a bottle and ship it or something. Nonheme iron (probably what you are taking now, cheapest form is ferrous sulfate, generally a small, round red pill) is not as well absorbed and can also cause gastric distress and/or constipation. Not pleasant! Heme iron supplements DO NOT have these effects.

I hope some of this has been helpful.

Kate

[NoahsMommy]

Oh good, I'm glad Kate posted here too.

I'm chronically anemic due to my crohns. I am supposed to take iron suppliments, but like Kate...have to be careful because of the GI side effects of too much iron.

Carole...a 12 isn't great, but its not horrible. A 12 is HIGH for me, and my doctors are comfortable with me at that number.

Eating iron rich food...and adding ONE suppliment will help. Or, even just a daily woman's vitamin.

Do they know WHY you are iron deficient? Are you losing blood anywhere? Is your body not absorbing iron?

[momoffuzzyfaces]

You may want to watch your intake of soda pop too. It leaches lots of minerals and vitamins out of your body. It's specially hard on calcium and vitamin c.

I've been anemic my entire adult life. I don't care for red meat either. I can still remember mom trying to make me eat liver!!!!
YUCK! Not in this lifetime!!!!!!!

Broccoli has lots of iron too and raisins do also. Best bet is check the labels on packaged food.

[NoahsMommy]

BTW...if your bloodwork was done during or after your cycle, that can skew iron numbers as well.

[carole]

WOW, thanks all that was most interesting, Kater I have been put on those little red pills and am very concerned about the side effects.

I will look into other suppliments.

I don't drink much pop or soft drinks as we call them or much tea or coffee, but i do lack in the red meat department for sure.

No the doctor did not look into anything further at this stage, but i guess if it continues to get lower or not improve they will.

Cheers everyone and thanks for the info, much appreciated, thanks PT doctors.

[jesse_3]

I'm sorry, all I can give is prayers for you to get this under control! Good Luck! If I hear anything about this, I will surely post it for you!

[kimlovescats]

Here is a good site for you: http://www.healthcastle.com/iron.shtml

[trayi52]

Carole, I hope you get to feeling better soon. I don't have any advice to offer, just some hugs and get well wishes.

Willie

[carole]

Thanks everyone, Kater put me onto something good, I was going to take the pills the doc gave me , but thanks to Kater I am not now, as they donot asorb well and cause too many side effects, which I just don't want.

I am going to purchase some from the Health 2000 shop, I can get three mths supply for 25 dollars, easily absorbed and no side effects, sounds good to me, there are other ones but they are too expensive for my budget.

Julie gave me a great recipe to spice up some spinach, so all in all I feel I can get on top of this small problem and be in tip top shape soon.