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What dose of iron do I need to take for low ferritin?
My ferritin is now 21 and my new doc said to start taking iron. He doesn't know anything about ferritin or how much to take though. Also, do I need to take more than just Vit. C with it? I've seen some iron supplements that have things like copper, folate and B vitamins.
No, I'm not pregnant nor have I ever been pregnant. Anemia does run in my family so it could be genetic and also could be from being hypothyroid for so long and not being on the right dose of meds. My Vitamin D levels were 64 last month when I was checked. The doc thought that was fine, but my chiropractor told me last week that people with Hashimoto's need their Vit. D to be at least 100.
It's really scary to see how little doctors know and even pharmacists don't know what ferritin even is. What do they teach these people in med school???
These are the meds I'm currently taking:
Advair, Singulair, Fosamax (I have osteoporosis), 120mg dessicated thyroid, birth control, 1000units Vit. D, multivitamin, 300mg magnesium caltrate (to help me sleep and for constipation).
I've been eating a lot of nuts and seeds lately so I would think that would help with the iron and copper. I've read not to take too much copper because that can cause liver problems.
It's really scary to see how little doctors know and even pharmacists don't know what ferritin even is. What do they teach these people in med school???
These are the meds I'm currently taking:
Advair, Singulair, Fosamax (I have osteoporosis), 120mg dessicated thyroid, birth control, 1000units Vit. D, multivitamin, 300mg magnesium caltrate (to help me sleep and for constipation).
I've been eating a lot of nuts and seeds lately so I would think that would help with the iron and copper. I've read not to take too much copper because that can cause liver problems.
Hi Sunshine_67, Very good question! You might want to consider taking a balanced mineral supplement rather then just taking one mineral alone. Are you, or were you recently pregnant? I think it is always important to try and ascertain what the root cause of the problem or deficiency is. Sometimes women can become anemic or Iron deficient when they are pregnant. Do you have any history of Ulcers?
If you do take an Iron supplement alone, it’s better to take it a different time than you take a calcium supplement (if you are taking that also) and it you take an iron supplement on it’s own, it is best to take it with food and take a lesser dose twice a day than it is to take a larger dose once a day. And as you mentioned it is helpful to take with Vitamin C. ( I am no expert but I have read a lot about this topic lately)
It does not surprise me that your doctor, (and mine) know nothing about mineral deficiencies. Stella is absolutely right; too much Iron can be toxic and throw your whole mineral balance out of whack even though you are deficient. Getting your body’s minerals back in balance will take some time to get back to normal. Too much at once could cause an undesirable result. Many of us with thyroid disease are also deficient in copper. It is always best to get your vitamins and minerals from the food you eat, but sometimes for one reason or another our bodies can’t break down certain foods to get as much of the nutrients that we need. Most people would typically get enough Iron (and critical Micronutrients) from foods like red meant, green leafy vegetables, potatoes, liver, chicken, raisins, fortified breakfast cereals etc. One critical factor with Iron is Caffeine. Caffeine makes the absorption of Iron more difficult.
I don’t know your history but in my case I was deficient in Calcium and Vit D, so my Doctor told me to take 2 grams of Calcium a day and after a month cut back to 1200 mg. Well.. that proved to be a big problem because in doing so I made my body deficient in Magnesium and Zinc and suffered terrible muscle cramps and Charlie horse” every time I played football After doing the research, I realized that by taking Calcum/D3 supplement s and not a balanced mineral supplement with D3 this caused me to be deficient in the other minerals and eventually this led t the bad cramps. Recently I went to a Naturopath and was put on the “Blood Type A” diet. I learned a lot about the concept of “Whole Heath” healing including balancing my minerals, I am certainly no expert, but I have had to learn a lot about minerals lately because my doctor not only didn’t help me with her advise, but caused me some problems. I would suggest talking to a knowledgeable Naturopath and then discuss that with your doctor. Without knowing anything about your medical history or what medications you are on, I would not want to suggest any particular supplement or dosage. Everyone is different and what works for me may not be best for you.
Good Luck!
McMillan
If you do take an Iron supplement alone, it’s better to take it a different time than you take a calcium supplement (if you are taking that also) and it you take an iron supplement on it’s own, it is best to take it with food and take a lesser dose twice a day than it is to take a larger dose once a day. And as you mentioned it is helpful to take with Vitamin C. ( I am no expert but I have read a lot about this topic lately)
It does not surprise me that your doctor, (and mine) know nothing about mineral deficiencies. Stella is absolutely right; too much Iron can be toxic and throw your whole mineral balance out of whack even though you are deficient. Getting your body’s minerals back in balance will take some time to get back to normal. Too much at once could cause an undesirable result. Many of us with thyroid disease are also deficient in copper. It is always best to get your vitamins and minerals from the food you eat, but sometimes for one reason or another our bodies can’t break down certain foods to get as much of the nutrients that we need. Most people would typically get enough Iron (and critical Micronutrients) from foods like red meant, green leafy vegetables, potatoes, liver, chicken, raisins, fortified breakfast cereals etc. One critical factor with Iron is Caffeine. Caffeine makes the absorption of Iron more difficult.
I don’t know your history but in my case I was deficient in Calcium and Vit D, so my Doctor told me to take 2 grams of Calcium a day and after a month cut back to 1200 mg. Well.. that proved to be a big problem because in doing so I made my body deficient in Magnesium and Zinc and suffered terrible muscle cramps and Charlie horse” every time I played football After doing the research, I realized that by taking Calcum/D3 supplement s and not a balanced mineral supplement with D3 this caused me to be deficient in the other minerals and eventually this led t the bad cramps. Recently I went to a Naturopath and was put on the “Blood Type A” diet. I learned a lot about the concept of “Whole Heath” healing including balancing my minerals, I am certainly no expert, but I have had to learn a lot about minerals lately because my doctor not only didn’t help me with her advise, but caused me some problems. I would suggest talking to a knowledgeable Naturopath and then discuss that with your doctor. Without knowing anything about your medical history or what medications you are on, I would not want to suggest any particular supplement or dosage. Everyone is different and what works for me may not be best for you.
Good Luck!
McMillan
My ferritin is extremely low so I don't think I need to worry about overdosing right now. I was surprised too that my doc didn't know about ferritin or iron or dosing, but neither did my primary care doc. My current doc said to just ask the pharmacy.
remember that your iron is a hard mineral and those are not water soluable. Can be toxic is injested to high. Your doctor should have given you a clue - based off of the labs what dosage you should take with the copper and iron supplements.
C's and B's are water soluable so they will eliminate if intake is to high. Usually a good C will be around 2000mgs and a plain old B-complex multi will give you enough of that too.
C's and B's are water soluable so they will eliminate if intake is to high. Usually a good C will be around 2000mgs and a plain old B-complex multi will give you enough of that too.
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