I need your help please! Iron (HB) low again!

[nickelbabe]

I had my latest (last!) blood test results today - the blood was taken 2 weeks ago.
The HB level is low, even lower than before: it's now 10.0, and the MW is not happy.
apparently, my iron stores are good (normal!)and one of them has even gone up (platelets I think) but she says that because my HB is low, I'm not absorbing it.

Her main issue is that I'm not resting (I own a shop and can't have time off before the birth because I have no one to cover)

My latest plan of action is this:
Today I will close ½ hour early at 5, and then I will open at 10:30 and close at 5 every day. (i don't open sundays anyway)
I have things planned for Thursday, Friday and Saturday night, there is potential to cancel the Saturday night (it's a party), but Thurs and Fri are non-negotiable. I have church on Sunday, and I can't skip that (but it is only a couple of hours so I can rest all afternoon)

DH is a postie, so finishes work at 2-ish and I've said that he can take over the till once we've had lunch.
He has holiday booked all next week, so he can do the lion's share of the work that week.
(i don't do housework anyway, so we don't need to worry about that!)

I have multi-vitamin tablets that I try to remember to take.

I have realised that I tend not to eat all day from when I have breakfast until DH comes in for lunch. (which can be nearly 4 o'clock some days!), supplementing with a couple of biscuits mid-morning.

So, I thought I could have a bowl of ready-brek (lots of iron) with milk and follow it with a satsuma/glass of OJ at about 12?

What I'd like is some ideas of meals that are big in iron and vit C, so that I can get as much ready iron into my system as possible.
MW suggested dried apricots but that made me want to vomit (I might be forced, so I won't rule it out!)
I'm a vegetarian, so nothing with meat in, please! (but do eat eggs and dairy)

I'm hoping that these ideas might help others in my predicament, so I don't mind lots of suggestions (even obvious ones like drink juice with your tablets etc)

thank you! :)

I sent DH to boot's and he's got me some Spatone.

I have eaten a bowl of ready brek and a satsuma.
feel very lively now!

I'll google that recipe.

I'm not going as far as musesli! [boak]

floradix worked wonders with me- take it half an hour before breakfast and dinner x

Hi Nickelbabe,

I'm a dietetics student and fellow low iron sufferer!

Non meat iron sources (including supplements) should be taken with a bit of orange juice or lemonade. Vitamin C greatly helps in the absorption of plant iron sources. So spinach with lemon and olive oil is also a good example.

Dairy (especially milk) inhibits iron absorption so iron fortified cereals are a big marketing gimmick with few added health benefits (i.e you won't be getting much iron out of them). If you do end up taking iron supplements you will see in the info pamphlet that it clearly says to take them away from milk (and best on an empty stomach!).

Hope that helps a little.

Best of luck...

ooh, i didn't know that about dairy.
that's interesting.

so i'm better having my porridge with water and the juice?
taken on board.
thank you :)

Hi All

This thread is also making me hungry! My HB is currently 14.4 but I'm a meat eater, so maybe that has something to do with it. That said, I've been really upping my intake of dark green veg too as I've heard this has plenty of iron, so things like spinach, broccoli, cabbage ... ooh, christmas is coming so sprouts (gip) will be on the menu too ...

we bought sprouts on sunday, so have had two meals with them.
I like broccoli and sprouts, and kale, but not other leafy green veg.
at this time of the year i don't need much else in leafy green veg, cos I eat those till they' come out of my ears!

oh, i do like spinach, but that's a summer one.

Do you eat fish? If so, apparently oily fish is a good source. I'm tucking into tinned sardines on toast a lot at the moment. I'd also heard about not eating dairy at the same time as iron rich food

no, people who eat fish aren't vegetarians (no matter what they say - it makes it tricky to explain to people!)

I'm going to find it tricky to sort out my breakfast thing, aren't i?
i like cereal.
:(

normally during the week, I have a fried egg cob for brekkie, but at weekends, I have cereal.

Just wondered, as I have several friends who describe themselves as vegetarian, but do eat fish (although aren't they actually pescetarian, is that the right word?). Hope your iron picks up again. I have more blood tests next week and last time I was told mine were borderline, so I am trying to be very good this week

I don't think a fried egg cob is the end of the world ? Chuck a few seeds in with the egg while it's frying? And what about porridge at weekends, made with water? And then some nice fresh fruit?

i think pescatarian is the right word, yes. When fish-eaters call themselves vegetarian, it becomes more difficult for vegetarians to make people understand what we eat. It means that we're often told that the veggie option is fish, and then we're seen as awkward when we have to refuse. :(

fingers crossed for your results.

I don't think i'd like porridge all the time, but I can cope with it as a mid-morning snack.
maybe i'll do jam toast on the weekend (that's fruit!) and I have juice with it too.
:)

I couldn't do seeds in with the egg- i have a thing about textures. I can eat seeds on the cob though - that's okay, you can get some nice seeded cobs.

i just found this website

looks like everyone except me knew about the milk thing.

yes, seeded cobs is a top plan . I knew about the milk thing technically but am also suffering pregnancy brain and regularly wash down my spatone with an unhelpful coffee

I'm going home now -next part of the plan.
I realised when i saw a face in the doorway that one of my best customers comes by after 5 to place orders.

I opened the door to him and explained midwife's orders, and said he can text me if he has an order he needs to place

ooh - good plan. Rest up

10 is not the end of the world....Spatone worked for me as well....poured it into oj and had it with breakfast if budget is tight concentrate oj is fine...

I am quite worried now- midwife left me a message on friday saying mine was at '5', not that I even know what that means, and has put me on iron tablets three times a day! I feel fine, work a lot longer hours than the op but now am stressed I am going to do myself serious damage.

can someone shed some light on how serious this is??? I am 29, 30 weeks pregnant, healthy weight and baby number 2???

What about fruit flapjacks and you could chop up a few dried apricots and add them so they are more 'disguised' if you aren't keen!? I've been living on flapjacks! I try to have one as a snack everyday when I'm at work.
Would soya milk work with cereal instead of dairy? I had no idea about avoiding milk with iron-rich foods - I thought I was being very good having big bowlfuls of sultana bran!

Brazil nuts are also high in iron so you could chomp on a few handfuls during the day?

sorry- just googling it- five can't be right, i think i would be dead at that level. will have to ring and find out!

Someone has probably said this already but try the liquid iron (iit comes in little squirty pouches, I think its called Floradix - from Boots) in orange juice. The vit C helps absorbtion. I tried this and it doens't taste as bad as it sounds!

As pruney said - you need Vit C to absorb iron. Congratulations! btw