Is this too much Iron ?

[LucaFritz]

Ive been prescribed Ferrous Fumerate 210mg tablets for slight anemia but on the box it says to take 3 tablets a day surely that is too much iron ? Google says RDA is 17mg a day for an adult woman worried to take them in case it harms baby but surely it can't be wrong if a dr prescribed it that way ?

With most vitamins and minerals it’s safe to have quite a lot more than the RDA. I would just check up on what the max safe amount is.

I was prescribed the same and still had a low iron count after a month of taking it so had to eat a ridiculous amount of greens too.
Don't worry!

Hmm I just checked NHS site - 20 is considered a high dose that could make you feel poorly. I would check with the pharmacist or doctor then.

Googling suggests the dosage is correct to treat iron deficiency anaemia

www.nhs.uk/medicines/ferrous-fumarate/

If you aren't sure, check back with your GP who prescribed it not Google - the lower dose mentioned above is for general maintenance not iron deficiency. If it was a weird dose I would have expected the pharmacist to query it though ( I had queries when prescribed off label doses of antihistamines before).

If you're iron deficient/anaemic then that sounds about right. I was deficient on the verge of anaemia and was prescribed Ferrous Furmerate 210mg twice a day. I wish I was on three per day as it took me three weeks to feel anywhere near able to function again. I am still on them now 15 weeks later and my iron levels are mid range. I will need to continue them until birth and whilst breast feeding, according to my GP.
I felt sick at the start so took them with a little food (more efficient on an empty stomach however) and some orange juice to help absorb. Avoid dairy for an hour before taking and two hours after or it will hinder absorption.

I do remember similar posts on here where woman were taking three per day. How far along are you and how low were your levels?

They should request another blood test a month after starting iron tablets to check how your levels are increasing. Request one if they haven't already asked you to book one. You should also have routine blood tests around 28 weeks.
Re. google saying RDA 17mg a day. This is correct if your iron levels are within the acceptable range. My GP and midwife has also said that I should continue to take my pregnancy vitamins (which contain 17mg).
Hope you feel better soon.

Dr's is closed or I'd give them a ring to double check. So the higher dose is to treat the anaemia but its not safe once the anaemia is gone ? Makes more sense now i don't get how i have anemia in the first place as i eat tons of iron rich foods each day ive also cut down on my calcium so it gets absorbed better and have 2 glasses of OJ a day to help absorption too

I'm on the same and I'm taking 3 a day too. Gp wouldn't prescribe that amount if you didn't need it.

Im 30 weeks it was flagged up at my 28 week blood test im not sure how anaemic i am as they didn't specify but just gave me a script for these tablets

www.nhs.uk/medicines/ferrous-fumarate/

^ this page makes it clear that OP has been prescribed a standard dose.

20 is considered a high dose that could make you feel poorly.. That would be 20mg per kilo of body weight. And humans are not great at iron absorption - absorbing around 10% of what is consumed is considered normal. So, if OP weighed 65kg, to have an iron overdose she'd need as much as 13000mg. She'll be fine on what she's been prescribed.

I thought it was only diet related too (and mine is good) but once the Dr quizzed me it transpired that two years of breastfeeding followed by a miscarriage and then this pregnancy 8 weeks later had resulted in depleted levels. My body hadn't had the time to recover the levels.

Mine were prescribed at 20 weeks. They have most likely put you on three as you are nearing the home stretch and ABSOLUTELY do not want to birth if you are anaemic or iron deficient. You need your reserves up.

@Tableclothing where did you find that info? It just said 20mg or more on the NHS site, nothing about weight - and that it can make you feel a bit stomach poorly, which is also a side effect of ferrous fumerate (not dangerous, but also not ideal if it’s unnecessary).

Pinkblueberry

www.webmd.com/first-aid/iron-poisoning

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16255338

The NHS link in my post above shows standard iron doses.

I've been on a similar regime to OP for some time now and I'm not dead yet.

Dont think im quite 65kg even with baby on board im about 50kg at a guess. I took on tablet for night will start the 3 tablets a day in the morning

@LucaFritz mine was also flagged up at 28 week bloods I knew I was anaemic though as I've been totally exhausted the whole pregnancy... Now 30 weeks also. Have you not been sent for repeat bloods? I literally had mine done on the Monday... The Thursday was prescribed the iron tablets as bloods came back and then was asked to go get another blood test done the following week not sure why I think they just need to double check levels or something. X

No i only turned 30 weeks today so maybe I'll have another next week when i see the midwife

Slight anemia can mean anything. Basically if you’re anemic or deficient in anything the RDAs don’t apply. I had to take 5,000 iui of Vitamin D per day at the start of pregnancy because I have a deficiency and taking the RDA could have resulted in my baby being born with rickets.

If it helps, I’m on 305mg tablets & take 3 a day! And I took the exact same in my previous pregnancy as well! You’ve def not been over prescribed, anaemia needs treating with high dose iron.

It’s actually really hard for your body to absorb iron from both food & tablets even when not pregnant. In pregnancy, your blood volume increases a huge amount & you become ‘haemo -diluted’ as my GP said. In other words, you’ve got an awful lot more red blood cells than usual requiring iron. And baby zapping your iron as well. So even eating a good diet often isn’t enough! The tablets should really help & you’ll notice a difference in your bloods in a month or so.. takes a little while to restock!