🩸 Iron Deficiency Anemia: Prevention and Treatment

Iron deficiency anemia is one of the most common and easiest-to-prevent mistakes I’ve routinely seen doctors make. This problem is especially prevalent in women, particularly young women, and it drives me crazy.

Over my 25-year career, I’ve seen it countless times, and in this article, I’ll explain exactly what you need to do to prevent it and how to treat it if it occurs.

🔹 Understanding Iron Deficiency Anemia

Iron deficiency anemia causes fatigue and can lead to many other problems.

It’s particularly common in women because women lose iron every month.

Despite being imminently preventable, doctors often don’t run simple tests that could catch it early.

Even when tests are done, they usually only detect anemia after iron levels are already very low.

🔹 Difference Between Iron Deficiency and Anemia

• Anemia: A deficiency in your red blood cells (RBCs).
  • Diagnosed with a CBC (Complete Blood Count).
  • CBC is inexpensive and widely available. ✅

EVERY TEENAGE THROUGH PREMENOPAUSAL WOMAN SHOULD HAVE A CBC RUN EVERY YEAR!

• Iron deficiency: Low iron stores in the body before RBCs are affected.
  • Detected by ferritin testing.
  • Ferritin is not part of a routine CBC but is essential to catch early deficiency.

🔹 Why Ferritin Matters

• Ferritin measures iron storage levels, not just iron in the blood.
• A ferritin level below 30 indicates low iron reserves, even if CBC appears normal.
• Detecting low ferritin early allows you to prevent anemia and its associated symptoms, such as fatigue.

You can experience fatigue and other symptoms of iron deficiency before anemia shows up on normal lab values.

🔹 Testing Recommendations

• CBC: Checks red blood cell count, hemoglobin, and hematocrit.
• Ferritin: Measures iron storage in the body.
• Goal: Ferritin levels around 75 or higher.
  • Too high: Above 200 may be excessive, but uncommon in menstruating women.

Summary: Every year, check your CBC and ferritin. Two simple but crucial tests.

🔹 Treating Iron Deficiency

Once low iron is identified, iron supplements are the standard treatment. However, iron can be hard on the digestive system, causing upset or constipation.

🔹 Forms of Iron I Recommend

• Iron bisglycinate:
  • High-quality, clean form, well-tolerated.
  • Typical dose: 25 mg, twice daily.
• Iron patches:
  • Absorbed through the skin.
  • Ideal for sensitive digestion.

Slow Fe is popular but contains artificial additives. I prefer cleaner alternatives like those listed above.

🔹 How Long to Take Iron

• Correcting anemia: Usually 1–2 months.
• Preventing recurrence: Continue until ferritin reaches ~75.
• Ferritin increases gradually: 3–7 points per month depending on the patient.
• Maintaining levels: Annual ferritin check is recommended to ensure ongoing adequacy.

🔹 Closing Thoughts

Good luck restoring your iron levels. 🩸

I’d love to hear more about your challenges and successes with iron deficiency in the comments below.

Product Links:

Thorne’s Iron Bisglycinate capsules: https://amzn.to/3DOAmeh

The iron patch: https://amzn.to/4fR3m2j

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