Need suggestions for supplementing iron and ferritin?

[apsjiml]

I have never supplemented iron, I took an iron panel to get a baseline in May 2018 before starting TRT.

Iron and TIBC
Iron Bind.Cap.(TIBC) 357 250-450 ug/dL 01
UIBC 249 111-343 ug/dL 01
Iron 108 38-169 ug/dL 01
Iron Saturation 30 15-55 % 01

Ferritin, Serum
Ferritin, Serum 224 30-400 ng/mL 01

Haven't looked at iron since then, I don't donate blood, last HCT was 45.5, I was assuming Iron is about the same as when I started. I don't think testosterone causes any sort of iron depletion?[/

I started supplementing iron in the beginning of May do to discovering an borderline iron deficiency upon starting TRT and a worsening iron deficiency two and a half years later. I started supplementing 325mg iron daily and 28mg ferritin and 4 weeks later scored an iron 81 and ferritin 80 and felt fine.

So after another month it would seem iron and ferritin levels continued to rise and I noticed I was feeling worse, now on the same dosages of iron and ferritin I'm seeing iron at 118 (59-158) and ferritin 101 (25-336). My skin is taking on a reddish bronze tone and experience a slight burning sensation or oversensitivity in skin.

If I drop the ferritin and only supplement the iron, I feel much worse and feel good again after adding back in ferritin, it's almost as if the iron by itself does almost nothing for my iron deficiency symptoms.

I'm told ferritin is better absorb in the stomach and gut, should I supplement more ferritin and less iron since I seem to feel almost nothing on iron supplements alone?

Advice appreciated, thank you.

A couple things -hope you don't mind

#1 when you tested those iron labs you really need iron saturation tested, that is the best test to show what your iron levels are Ferritin can but may be reflective of inflammation, serum iron is not a very good test. (I have Hemochromatosis) Tests To Determine Iron Levels
#2 I don't know how you tested but you need to be off all iron supplements at least 3 days many say 5 days.
#3 Based upon studies if one if trying to increase iron every other day works just as well if not better. Hepciden will increase with iron for about 24hrs causing the body to decrease the amount of iron absorbed. Both Hepatic and Body Iron Stores Are Increased in Dysmetabolic Iron Overload Syndrome. A Case-Control Study

 

[VacationMan]

I've ended up with hematocrit in excess of 51 due to TRT before. Had to donate blood to get rid of excess red blood cells. Even gave double red cells once or twice. This helped reduced my hematocrit but also tanked iron levels. Doc told me to take a supplement called Hemaplex every other day along with some orange juice, as vitamin C aids absorption of iron. It corrected my low iron condition over time. Now we check iron levels every 6 months along with the normal blood work. If we notice iron taking a dive, I get back on the Hemaplex. Simple thing to watch, really.

 

[bigfred32]

I was pretty concerned with hematacrit that I donated blood 6 times in 1 year and crashed my ferritin to a single digit. The only effect I had was pretty good fatigue after the gym, I go 5 days a week and all I wanted to do after was nap.
I stopped donating to maybe twice a yr and watch the hema. I avg about 50 but my dr wasnt too concerned until it would hit 54.
I was more worried about it than him. It took a couple months but im back in the triple digits and dont have the fatigue issues.
I never aupplemented iron because I didnt want to get on a merrygoround with dealing with the added iton issues.

 

[Systemlord]

It would seem I'm seeing the return of iron deficiency symptoms after 4 weeks of stopping iron supplements which is strange considering iron is 101 (previously 118) and ferritin has decreased from 101 to 63.

I have noticed since stopping iron supplements (iron bisglycinate) the symptoms were slowly returning which is strange considering my levels are still good. Two days ago the all the iron deficiency symptoms I had originally were returning and I took a iron capsule which eliminated the symptoms for about a day, I started getting rashes on my arms as the symptoms were improving.

I had more energy, felt better and symptoms resolving. Now a couple of days later the symptoms are returning again and don't understand why I'm breaking out in rashes which the skin swells up underneath the rash which is bright red, the red areas of hands turn bright reddish/pinkish color and itch like crazy!

The rashes appear 20-30 minutes after supplementing iron even though all symptoms are resolving.

Does anyone have any clue what is going on?

 

[madman]

My doctor likes me to take liver capsules to to try to raise my ferretin plus eat more organ meats. He wanted me to stop donating every two months which I’ve always done. I did for a while but donated and then did labs and my ferretin is low again. Ugh. Taking high dose liver tabs can be expensive on top of all my other supps.

Waste of money!

Iron bisglycinate is highly effective and dirt cheap to boot.

 

[MarkM]

How do you supplement "Ferritin"...isn't that the form the body stores Iron in..just throwing me off when you say 28mg Ferritin daily, didn't think you could supplement Ferritin, directly.
@Systemlord

Vince, I take a product from Cardiovascular Research called Ferritin which is iron from bovine spleen and I also take Iron Bisglycinate and Polysscharide Iron, both I here have good absorption. I can't say exactly what has brought my ferritin levels up but something in this combination has done so. Like many, over the years of donating blood I depleted my iron and ferritin levels. I read that your ferritin levels are the best measurement of iron in the body because that is your iron storage. As I understand it, ferritin is a protein that stores iron.

Since taking the products above my ferritin stay right around 135 and my iron levels around 130 very consistently and I feel really good with lots of energy. I seem to have more energy than most people 30 years younger. I've learned that for me, as long as my ferritin levels are up I feel good no matter what my iron levels are. But if my iron is high and my ferritin is low I feel like I am tired and have less energy.

Last labs were in May and I have a full set of labs coming up. We will see where these levels are now but I feel good and expect them to be up. I do eat more chicken livers and always take Vitamin C with iron and ferritin supplements.

 

[Systemlord]

I have a question, if someone starts supplementing iron days before iron and ferritin testing could it cause the results to be erroneous?

 

[pmgamer18]

Yes stop using it for 5 days then test.
pmgamer18

 

[Systemlord]

Since stopping iron, I feel the return of the symptoms I had in April. When I don't take iron I get diarrhea, fatigued, lightheaded and feel sick. It's either this or go back on the iron and these symptoms are gone, but replaced with what feels like fire ants running around inside me beating me, it stings and is very painful.

 

[Systemlord]

I'm am indeed experiencing iron overload again and the recent tests are accurate, this time without supplementing iron for the majority within a 2 month period. I have been supplementing vitamin C for 4 weeks do to a deficiency discovered in the beginning of August.

This is proof that the vitamin C deficiency was the first domino to fall. When I started taking 500mg vitamin C after a week I experience some serious side effects, so I dropped the vitamin C down to 250mg and 3 weeks later my iron is now too much for my body to handle.

I never needed to supplement iron, what I needed was vitamin C, only like everything I over respond to it. Since I made a full recovery on the glycinate which had 100mg vitamin C, I am lowering my vitamin C 100mg which is more than half the dosage I'm on now.

So now to get my iron down to a range I feel good, I have to do it dosing vitamin C. If my iron gets too low, I have to change vitamin C dosing to get iron to go where I want it.

I may need to micro dose vitamin C or just eat an orange every morning.

 

[pyater]

Need some similar help. Fighting low iron, ferritin and iron sat rate. I started with low iron test
7/5/2019




Starting supplementing 2 times daily with 65 mg of iron (equivalent 325 mg Ferrous Sulfate per the bottle) with 500 mg vitamin C and I also add L Lysine to aid with absorption on 7/8/2019.

Retested 2 months later (9/6/19) and ferritin came up and MCH came up but iron, iron sat rate are still low (didn’t move at all) and now RDW% is high.



As a precaution had a colonoscopy which was clear and tested for gluten allergies which were clear as well. I was on a PPI for acid reflux and stopped in July. I do still take zantac for acid reflux.
TRT protocol is empower 200mg compounded cream 2 clicks AM and 1 click PM with great results.
Dr. has suggested moving to 3 times per day on supplementation. Looking for any suggestions.

 

[Systemlord]

Update:

It wasn't iron overload I was experiencing, it seems for me at least a mega dose of vitamin C is 250mg, my AST levels were elevated and digestive distress. I could feel something going on in my liver, but apparently excess vitamin C "can cause serum ALT elevations that occur with extremely high doses of vitamin C are likely due to a direct but minimal toxic effect on the liver. The injury is, however, short lived and has not been linked to cases of acute or chronic hepatitis, acute liver failure or cirrhosis".

I reduced the dosage down to 100mg and within a short period of time symptoms disappeared. I feel so much better after reducing the vitamin C dosage to 100mg.

 

[fifty]

Can you address all this stuff through nutrition?

 

[Systemlord]

Can you address all this stuff through nutrition?

You know I just added orange juice to my breakfast which has 91mg of vitamin C and actually I felt much better today than I did yesterday taking the berry extract natural vitamin C supplement which by comparison cost a fortune.

I can spend $30 on supplements or 3$ on orange juice, The cost benefit ratio is lopsided. I had to get orange juice without magnesium because and need to eat medium size bananas to keep potassium elevated and can't handle the 450mg of potassium in orange juice, it's too much.

I lowered my potassium dosage over a week ago and like in April, my teeth started turning yellow and looked dull. My teeth felt very strange, apparently when potassium/magnesium balance is lost, the body pulls calcium from bones and teeth!

A day after increasing my potassium, teeth are beginning to take on their former white color. In fact you would never know my teeth were a different color only days ago.

 

[Nelson Vergel]

I have tried different iron supplements and this is the only one that does not give me gut issues

 

[VacationMan]

I've taken a product called Hemaplex and with very good success. I always take it with orange juice, as vitamin C enhanced absorption of iron.