Dd, 13, 'low lympocytes and ferrtin' - give iron rich diet'

[52andblue]

My Dd, 13, has been feeling subpar for a few months.
She went through a hard and fast puberty and also gets heavy nosebleeds. She has Autism so often doesn't tell me if she feels unwell as she is not sure what her 'normal' is. But last week she told me that she felt 'giddy again standing up and her eyes were doing that blacky thing again'. Turns out she's been feeling faint a lot, mainly on standing or even sitting up in bed in the morning. I called the GP and she did some blood tests and gave her a physical check.
She has low BP, and the bloods show low lympocytes and ferrtin (16).
They said 'probably post viral fatigue' (she may have had Covid last April, not sure as they were not testing then?) and make sure she eats an iron rich diet (she does). Is there anything else I can do to support her? She is so tired, seems wheezy and is just wiped out ALL the time.

If she has low ferritin, I would say she should be on an iron supplement. It takes time to increase ferritin through diet alone. I've had v low ferritin in the past and it does make you feel utterly exhausted, just climbing stairs was totally exhausting.

Also diet-wise, red meat is by far the best food to get your iron levels up. The iron in it us far more easily absorbed than the iron in say spinach. Eat with orange juice - vit c aids absorption.

I would ask for the actual ferritin level. Mine was 12. I think below 10 is considered deficient (sometimes blood transfusion needed), but healthy levels are between 50 and 70 so she may have a lot of iron to add.

sorry just seen ferritin 16. Thst is really low and would explain how she's feeling. You could also look at Vit C, D3 to boost her immune system.

ps my GP prescribed me an iron supplement when my results came in, without me asking. Some types of iron are easier on your stomach than others btw

Ferritin below 30 is an absolute iron deficiency. GPs can be really crap at spotting and treating this if not yet anemic. I recommend joining the iron protocol Facebook group, loads of good advice on supplements , dosage etc. It's important to take sufficient iron and in combination with vitamin C and away from dairy. It's more detailed than that and deficiently worth reading up on.

thank you all.

Her ferritin was 16. Mine was recently 22 and I feel rubbish.

Both starting 'Better You' iron spray supplement (she has Autism and can't take tablets)