Iron and haemoglobin and iron rich diet and supplement

[Rainagainandagain]

I've recently had a blood transfusion of 4 units and a iron infusion. Haemoglobin was 40. Iron stores 1 I think. I have been told I have thick ET and was told it could be cancer by junior Dr. Needs investigating so booked in for tests. Iron is so far OK. Very stressed about it...
Not eaten red meat since a very young age. Never had iron supplements -stupid I know and I only drink tea and coffee again stupid but find plain water a chore and in meetings at work so always get coffee or tea or fizzy sugar free pop. I have been given ferrous sulphate but it's awful any better supplements? Diet improvements? I don't eat leafy greens so very stupid of me I eat a lot of fruit and vegetables and meat free veggie meals... I don't know where to look for recipes containing iron.
Waiting on gastroscopy.
I feel better too.

I'm not an expert and don't have much to add but wanted to say sorry you're going through this.

I just found out today that coffee (and maybe tea) hinders the absorption of iron if drunk within about an hour before or after eating. The effect is apparently greater for non-meat sources of iron, as they're less bioavailable to start with.

Could you add squash to water? There are those very small concentrated squash squeezy bottles, quite portable and they sell them in all supermarkets.

Best of luck.

PS sardines are good apparently if you can face them

Drink fresh orange juice with the iron tablets as that helps absorption.

Thank you that's a great idea and will pick some up next time I shop thanks

I'm sorry you are going through this.

I found this list of iron rich foods that might help.

https://www.redcrossblood.org/donate-blood/blood-donation-process/before-during-after/iron-blood-donation/iron-rich-foods.html

Some people don't absorb iron very easily and some don't absorb non haem iron, which is unfortunate if you are vegetarian/vegan.

Eating vitamin C rich foods or drinking vitamin C rich drinks with iron rich foods really does help with iron absorption as pp have said.

I hope you get some answers soon 💐

Ferroglobin C is my choice of iron supplement. The vit C aids iron absorption. As a pp says do not take with caffeine. I have mine with peppermint tea.

I think Floradix is supposed to be very good if you can face a liquid supplement (I can’t).

Realistically if you don’t eat meat or green leafy vegetables and you are already low in iron, I don’t think dietary changes will
cut it. You need supplements. Also you probably need B12 supplements.

Fingers crossed your test results are ok x

Spatone is meant to be good and I toook it whilst pregnant. Hope you're ok , you must've felt horrendous with a hb of 40! X

Thanks i never drink fruit juice or take vitamin c used to eat loads of salads with spinach and pepper and things but working away a lot I don't eat well as I should and I drink tea of coffee all the time. My bad!!

I'm the opposite - I need to reduce iron - so this is my list of things not to do!

Eat beef, lamb and offal - liver paté is good if you don't like offal usually.
Drink orange juice with meals.
Drink white wine with meals (red not so good).
Don't drink tea/coffee/milk with meals.
Reduce dairy - calcium inhibits iron absorption
Eat plain chocolate.

Wow! 40 is impressive. Mine was 66 (ferritin 2) and that appeared to cause quite a stir at the surgery. I had one unit of blood and have been taking ferrous fumerate, I think 210mg, daily for the last 10 months. My haemoglobin came up fairly quickly but ferritin was only 15 at last testing so still going with the iron. I would say I have a diet fairly rich in iron and have never been anaemic before so was quite surprised. I was also told “suspected cancer” but gastroscopy and colonoscopy were clear and it’s now thought to be an absorption issue. Hope all goes well for you. I bet you felt much better after your transfusion.

I feel much better thanks. I had 4 units and iron infusion. No further blood test until last week and it was hemoglobin 130 with platelets over 1000. Other blood cells are also high but they were all low before transfusion. Now they are concerned about high platelets and i need to have more tests. I thought it might be due to transfusion as im 5ft 3 and am 8stone 4lb so all that blood might be concentrated.

The only type of iron I can take is iron bisglycinate. i recommend it.

Do you have any other symptoms? I had high platelets over 1200 at its highest and low iron. Mine is linked to a flare of Inflammatory Bowel Disease. I had an iron infusion which helped but I can’t take oral iron supplements.

Do you take antacids or proton pump inhibitors as the reduced stomach acid impacts iron absorption?

Thanks for replying. I don't have medicines for proton pump or antacids and don't have any GI symptoms. I haven't been tested bowel inflammation. I am on ferrous sulphate which is awful!

Floradix do tablets too.

Extra spinach is good. I use frozen or do a mascarpone and fresh spinach lasagne.

Please try the iron bisglycinate. I’ve tried everything from Floradix to spatone to ferrous sulfate to ferric maltol. Iron bisglycinate is the only one i can take without side effects. It made me gassy at the start but that settled after a week. Take before bed (to avoid tea/coffee times). Start with one, and if you tolerate it you can gradually increase.

Thanks so much. Very kind of you and thanks for caring. I will try iron bisglycinare ASAP as I too find iron hard to take. I've been so ill and don't ever want to feel so awful again.

Sorry you are going through this.

To echo others, things rich in Vit C help absorb iron whereas things high in tannins will deplete it. Always have your iron tablets with OJ, kiwi fruit, peppers or other Vit C rich foods. Look up food high in tannins and ideally cut down and don't take them with your iron meds. (tea, coffee, berries, certain nuts, red wine, dark choc etc)

If they have prescribed ferrous sulphate, then either you are still deficient or bleeding from somewhere. People will tell you that spatone and floradix are 'gentle' iron and better for you. That is because they both contain such little iron and are absolutely useless in correcting a deficiency. They are for maintenance only. This is a rough comparison to a daily, adult dose and the iron content:

Spatone 5mg
Ferroglobin 14mg
Over the counter multivitamin with iron 14mg
Floradix 15mg
Ferrous suphate 200mg tabs= 65mg- 195mg. Higher if you are on the 320mg ones.

I agree that iron bisglycinate is worth asking about. I assume its gastric issues you are having from your current meds? This can take time to settle if affected. Spirulina is a blue/green algae which is high in iron and you can buy tablets online or from health food stores. It is in no way to replace your prescribed iron meds, but can be used in conjunction with them. Wishing you all the best.

I had an iron infusion a couple of weeks ago because my ferritin was 5 and my serum iron below range. My haemoglobin was fine though so it was severe iron deficiency without anaemia.

Iron tablets have always caused me huge stomach issues however I ordered some Three Arrows from the US and have been taking a couple a day as recommended by my haematologist and haven’t had any side effects.

They are heme iron so no good if you’re vegetarian but there aren’t any of the usual restrictions with them such as avoiding tea/coffee etc. Sounds disgusting but I empty the capsules into a smoothie of soy milk, banana, peanut butter, spinach and chia seeds. I feel great for the first time in over 10 years.

I too recommend iron bisglycinate. It comes as 28mg, which doesn't sound like much compared to the 200mg dose of iron salts. But it is far more bioavailable, so you absorb a greater percentage of the 28mg than the percentage you absorb of the 200mg iron salts. You therefore can't compare the actual dosage directly.
It didn't give me any side effects, and I managed to increase my ferritin whilst taking it.