Iron - when should you start taking supplements?

[emkana]

I'm nearly 36 weeks now.

Midwife has checked blood twice over the last two months - both times iron was 10 point something. She just said to keep an eye on it and to take pregnacare, which I have just started doing.
Read today that iron should be between 11.5 and 15 - so should I be taking supplements?
To be honest I don't trust the midwife very much, she's not very good.

Yes
Yes
No

bump

you can have spatone which a sort of natural supplement that u can get from holland and barratt. Can't find it online but its a liquid that u add to orange or apple juice and contains iron. its safe in pregnancy and can reduce the risk of tablets.

HTH

my level was 12.5, am nearly 36 weeks too, and got put on iron tablets. GP didn't think it necessary, but midwife did.

there was arecent study that showed women's iron level does naturally drop below 11, and that it doesn't necessarily so any harm. It may be that that prompted your midwife to say don't worry - and anyway pregnacare includes iron doesn't it?

But I don't think it does any harm to take them anyway - other than constipation that is.

\link{http://www.spatone.co.uk/en.php?section=home\spatone info} i was low iron with 1st pg and this brought my levels back up, 2nd pg i needed tablets too

i was very anaemic (but then am even not when pg) and was only told when i asked in the delivery suite for a water birth that if you are low on iron you cant deliver in the pool - luckily our water supply had been disturbed for a few weeks and there was loads of cast iron deposits in it, they tested me again i was full of iron so i got my water birth! just thought i would mention it as no one told me during pregnancy and i would have been gutted if i had missed out on the birthing pool, so would have been worth it to me to take the tablets even if i wasnt that low

Doesn't Pregnacare contain iron?