Low folate - what does it mean.

[critiqueofeveryday]

Been feeling ropey lately - really tired, a bit down, breathless, weak. Had a blood test yesterday. Also did a stool sample, but the less said about that the better.

Surgery just rang. The receptionist said I have quite bad folate deficiency anaemia, and I need to go and pick up a prescription for folic acid. She was pressed for time, so that's all I know.

I had a quick google, and the symptoms for this sound right. I don't understand why I have it, though or what it means or what I should do about it. If anyone could just spare a bit of time to chat to me about it, I would be grateful.

Just means you are low in folates aka folic acid aka vitaman b6. You can get more by adding things like black eyed peas, spinach etc into your diet and/or pills. Did they check your b12 too as they often go hand in hand. I have low folate and low b12.

Titsy - I'm not sure about B12, the only thing they mentioned was folate.

The anaemia is quite bad, so I have to take some supplements for a while, but that's all I know.

I think it may be a consequence of having a really hard winter being very cold and living in my house over building work and not having a kitchen and not being able to eat that well. (I am whiskyowl from the extension thread - I NC because I have a stalkery person in my life and I had posted pics of my house on that thread).

It is mainly caused by a lack of folic acid in your daily diet although there are other reasons. I'm prescribed Folic Acid on and off as I have low folate levels. I am taking it at the moment. My problem is that I don't like salad, most vegetables, fruit juice, all the things that you find it in, so my levels get very low.

I know when they are low as I get tired, and I get ulcers on my tongue when my period is due, it is a sure sign.

The strange thing is that I like vegetables. I normally have a good diet. It's just I couldn't cook while I had no kitchen.

That would make sense, because if you didn't eat "normally" for you, for a while, then your levels could have dropped and it takes quite a while to build them up again.

It can happen after only a short time of a poor diet so that's probably what it was. Should be fine after 3 months of tablets and getting back to your normal diet :) I don't know why it happened with me either. Possibly down to daily drinking which I stopped.

You need your B12 results as well, they go hand in hand and supplementing one can mask a deficiency of another.