Too anaemic for home birth..any top tips for rapid increase in iron levels?

[cupcakesgalore]

What a bummer. I've just been told my levels are down to 9.2 and they have to be a minimum of 10.2 for a home birth - poss. 10 if the manager of m/ws agrees. I'm really disappointed - pool is ready, I've mentally got into gear with the whole thing and now this. I've got to take 600mg of iron every day for 2 wks when they'll retest my blood. I'll be 39 wks then. The ,m/w said it might poss. be enough time to get it back up by 1g. I hate iron tablets - they make me realy sick and tummy achy, so I'm not in for fun over the next fortnight but worth a try. Anyother top tips for rapidly increasing my iron levels?

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Drink orange juice whilst takingyour oron tablets - it's supposed to help your body absorb the iron. Stop drinking tea and cofee completely. eat dried apricots...eat steak with broccoli...hmmm..can't think but good luck!!

Can they not give you an iron injection? I had to have them whilst hving dd2 dueto anemia.

Second spatone. Mix it with orange juice to increase absorption. I had none of the side effects that you get with iron tablets. I beleive a few squares of good quality chocolate are beneficial to

Good expensive prunes dipped in good dark chocolate. Yum.

third for spatone & orange juice

spinach, dark green leafy veg, red meat, dark choccy

no tea & coffee

dried apricots, leafy greens, something called Floradix is advertised in the Emma's diary I got.
Actually much the same as everyone else.
Good luck!

Iron infusion? If it is what you have really set your heart on.

Otherwise, being dehydrated the day of the test will make your iron seem higher .

Thanks - particularly like the idea of prunes in dark choc!

What type of iron are you taking? Some forms are much easier to absorb than others, I used iron bisglycinate by Vega vitamins which was much easier to take and more effective than ferrous sulphate or fumerate. But I know lots of people use Spatone or Floradix very effectively.

And you're not too anaemic for a homebirth! The hospital may have a policy that your hb 'must' be over a certain level, but you're not bound by their policies (which vary from place to place anyway, there's nothing magic about the number 10). I had a homebirth when my last known hb level was just over 7! (although I had taken iron since then so I expect it had gone up a bit). Have you seen this page on the Homebirth website?

The best guide to whether you're anaemic or not is how you feel - do you feel tired/breathless? If not, then there likely isn't a problem. And there is no evidence that low hb makes you more likely to bleed heavily, so if you're told that, ask them for references. Good luck!

cupcakesgaloer - I second the spatone and orange juice as more palatable than iron tablets.

As a midwife, can I let you know that the midwives cannot stop you having a homebirth. They can advise you that they would prefer your iron level to be higher but they cannot dicate your homebirth choice. Michel Odent says that a Hb of 9.5 shows that your placenta is working really well.

What the nidwives don't want to happen is that you bleed after delivery which could make you more anaemic. It may be sensible to opt for a managed third stage which reduces blood loss (injection for placenta) if you do stay at home.

BTW - I hate women being put under pressure at this stage of pregnancy (or any stage)

you can take up to 4 spatone a day which would help.
frozen spinach and chuck it in everything soup, casserole, pasta sauce you make
chocolate
drink orange juice with your emals to help absorb the iron.

good luck

Is Spatone as likely to raise my Hb as the Ferrous sulphate tablets - I've been told to take 600mg/day. I am extremely breathless - even when sitting, and having to repeat stuff to the children is driving me crazy as it's such an effort. I'm also absolutely exhausted -to a pt. I've never felt before, where I just feel defeated by it. I have a 6 yo, 4yo and 2yo and expect to feel tired but I just don't seem to feel v. motivated to get up and do stuff. I'm also q. light headed. Anyway, my m/w wasn't that happy to deliver me at home if I stay this way - we live a good half hour from the nearest hospital - and she is v. pro-home birth.

seems a little strange that if there that worried they wouldnt give you iron jab they told me most women with an iron problem have 1 jab a fortnight i was plannin on havin a hospital birth and they made me have 2 jabs a week had a very sore bum for the last weeks of pregnancy

defo with the pure orange conatains vit c helps your body absorb the iron and the chocolate has be dark and conatin at least 75% cocoa

hth

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Spatone worked for me! I didn't want a homebirth, but they were talking possible transfusion because my levels were REALLY low and the iron tablets prescribed I couldn't take - they just ripped my gut too much and made me vomit.

But mears told me about Spatone and I was back up to 10 at 38 weeks .

I had similar situation - think my iron levels were lower than yours. I was fortunate that I didn't have side effects from the iron tablets, and they brought my iron levels back uo to 12 quite rapidly. More importantly I felt SO much better physically and emotionally. I didn't realise how down it was making me feel. Hope this helps if you do have to take them. (When the hospital doctor prescribed them the pharmacist was unsure it I could take that high a dose - can't remember how much now though...)
Good luck.

another for spatone

I'd second (or third) the spatone. I was 9.5 a few weeks before and in despair with the similar home birth rule they have here, getting lots of stick from the midwives etc.
I couldn't face the tabs either so took spatone and it went up very quickly to 9.8, nobody really argued after that as they all knew it was 'near enough'.
Many health services are happier to 'agree' to a homebirth (not that it's up to them) if you are willing to have a managed third stage, it shouldn't be an issue if they knew the research but it might help you 'bargain' and keep them sweet iyswim ; )

Seems you are getting good advise already. BUT if you can get hold of blackcurrants and redcurrants, eat as much as you can, they are high in iron and high in vitamin c, so aids absorption. Raisins are also high in iron, so have chocolate covered raisins as a treat to yourself! Eat eggs. Egg yolks are high in Iron. I would make scrambled eggs based on one whole egg, and one egg yolk, so as to increase amounts of egg yolk as to eggwhite ratio. Cut out milk as it hinders the absorption.