Iron supplements for a teenager

[slgsue1979]

Hi all just looking for some opinions please. I am off course going to speak to my GP or pharmacist first!
My son has been having a really crap time health wise at the moment with his asthma and hayfever and it has been suggested that he may be slightly anaemic. Blood tests have been taken today. Others (friends/family) have suggested this too and some of them are doctors and nurses.
I have to wait 5 days for these results being the weekend and all but can a 13 year old take iron supplements? The poor lad is really not right and sleeping so much and his skin just drained of colour and being a mum I just want to help him now not in 5 days!
I know it may seem dramatic but he is my baby boy and it worries me so if I can start to help him I will.

[sadie9]

The thing with iron supplements is that you can overdose the iron and cause the opposite problem of too much iron, and also it can cause problems with side effects (constipation etc). The pharmacy won't give you iron supplements but will tell you to follow GP advice. My son 13yrs, had low ferritin (29 of a range 23.5 to 335), but not anaemic and he's not pale and GP said he's still normal so no treatment. We had issues with tiredness after PE, and some hair thinning/hair loss.
However, I got chewable kids vitamins in Holland and Barrett called Pre Vites (H&B own brand) they have 7mg of iron plus vitamins. They are for age 3yrs and up so figured I couldn't do any harm with them at that dosage, 1 per day. So you could be doing that until you get the bloods back in a week or so and then GP will advise you.