How low is my iron?

[Djfjrjc2022]

Under FBC it says: FBC - Hb: 12.5 g/dL, 125 g/L | FBC - WCC: 7.72 109 /L | Platelets: 177.00 109 /L, 177,000.00 10^6 /L | Haematocrit (HCt): (Not Recorded)(Not Recorded) % | MCV: (Not Recorded) fL

Then above it says ferritin 9.

I had bloods taken back in October, by chance happened to see on the app about 2 weeks ago that it said I needed iron as my midwife hadn't contacted me or GP. I've had tablets now for about 10 days (take one every other day) but still feeling really breathless. Is my iron really low or just borderline? One tablet every other day doesn't seem much to me, but I'm no expert!

Thanks!

Ferritin of 9 is pretty low.
Evidence shows taking a tablet every other day is as effective at raising blood iron as taking one every day.
Are you also working on getting more iron in the food that you're eating?
Taking iron /eating iron rich food at the same as having something high in vitamin C like orange juice or tomatoes can also help your body better absorb the iron.
I wouldn't expect to see a huge jump in your ferritin after only 10 days of iron

I have been taking the tablet with some orange juice but I don't really like it!
Okay will stick with it, the box said usual dose of 2-3 a day so I assumed it Meant it wasn't too bad!
Thank you!

Ask midwife to check dose, I was told a good level of ferritin in pregnancy is 30. But each lab does have different parameters, so next to your result it should say what they deem as low. Iron once a day with vitamin C, spinach, red meat stews are helpful generally. Avoid taking iron with tea/caffeine and milk as this can make it less absorbed.

Just to chime in, I had low ferritin before conceiving. You can get cereal and cereal bars which are fortified with iron and vitamin d. Coco pops is my go to 😂

My ferritin level was 40 at the booking in appointment and they put me on a high dose of iron - two tablets per day! It was making me so sick I halved it myself but they refuse to redo the blood test until 28 weeks.

Thank you everyone!
Spoke to the consultant yesterday and she said my actual iron wasn't too low but ferritin is the reserves which is low hence the need for the tablets. She did say that although it wasn't that low, many people do feel tired and breathless when the ferritin level is low so that makes sense!

She said to retest at 38 weeks so fingers crossed for some improvement by then (4 more weeks!)

My ferritin levels are 8, I was low before pregnancy. I’ve been given the tablets but find they are causing bad constipation. Does anyone have any advice? I eat loads of fruit and veg so should be getting a good amount of fibre in my diet and I didn’t have this issue with iron tablets before pregnancy.

Mine was low, can’t remember now maybe it was 12. I took iron tablets until about 30 weeks. I was incredibly tired in early pregnancy, I don’t know if that factored in to it. I perked up by week 17/18 enough that my bedtime was 8pm and I could semi function at work without a nap.