Ferritin boosting options

[Guest guest]

All:

I have serious concerns about taking iron supplements due to their potential to

set free radicals loose in the body...even though it appears we may need to take

iron on a short term basis to optimize our thyroid function. I am still getting

lots of palps on small doses of cytomel (25mcgs per day)...and attribute it to

my low ferritin (58). I know some of you are taking ferrous sulfate...seems

like there are safer options:

IRON

Iron supplements have been popular for decades, and many people require them.

Many recent studies, though, have linked iron to all kinds of biological damage.

Excessive iron can cause heart and liver disease and significant brain damage.

In 1992, an entire supplementary issue of the ls of Neurology was devoted to

reports of numerous scientific studies implicating iron in Parkinson's Disease

and other degenerative brain disorders. The most popular example of oxidation

damage is rust. Rust occurs when highly-reactive free radical iron reacts with

oxygen. The same thing can happen in the human body. Many types of brain, liver,

kidney and cardiovascular damage are literally due to rust.

On the other hand, low iron levels are a major health problem, accounting for

many undiagnosed cases of lethargy and fatigue. A routine blood chemistry test

will measure many parameters of serum iron and hemoglobin; but many blood tests

fail to include a test for ferritin. Ferritin is the body's primary iron storage

protein and is a much more sensitive measure of iron levels. You may have to

specifically request a ferritin test when getting a blood chemistry analysis.

Ferritin will also often detect internal blood loss that may be a very early

indication of a potentially major disease.

The " normal " ranges for ferritin levels given by blood testing labs are far too

high for optimal health. If you test in the upper half of the " normal " range for

ferritin, consider donating blood until ferritin levels drop to the lower half

of the " normal " range.

It is prudent not to take any form of iron supplement unless medical tests show

a clear need for it. Although no major scientific studies have been done to

determine the safest form of iron supplement, basic chemistry along with

scientific reports on short-term side effects point to some good general rules

for iron supplementation.

If you need to take iron supplements, never take ferrous sulfate. In spite of

the fact that many physicians and pharmacists still recommend it, ferrous

sulfate should be regarded as a poison. As soon as ferrous sulfate dissolves in

your stomach, the iron component becomes a pure free radical and begins doing

damage. Some antioxidant vitamins will attack and neutralize this free radical

iron, but then they are not available for counteracting other free radical

damage.

Ferrous fumarate and ferrous gluconate are a somewhat better choice as an iron

supplement; but some iron supplements have been designed to minimize the

potential of free radical damage. Cardiovascular Research sells bovine ferritin.

Since ferritin is a protein, it will be partially broken down in the digestive

tract, but much of the iron in the Cardiovascular Research product should remain

bound to protein, and should not cause as much free radical damage as

conventional iron supplements.

The safest iron supplements are probably the iron-polysaccharide complexes:

essentially iron bound up in a complex sugar molecule. Two pharmaceutical

companies sell this type of iron supplement, which was specifically designed to

minimize the free radical problem. One of these supplements is NIFEREX-150, made

by Central Pharmaceuticals of Seymour, Indiana. NIFEREX-150 contains 150 mg. of

elemental iron. Central also makes an excellent multi-vitamin and mineral

supplement called NIFEREX Daily Tablets, which contains 18 mg. of elemental iron

in the iron-polysaccharide complex, along with other important nutrients.

nd Pharmaceuticals of Greensboro, N.C. also makes an iron-polysaccharide

complex called NU-IRON-150.

Both of these iron-polysaccharide complex products are available without a

prescription, although few stores carry them in stock. Most pharmacies can

special order either product. NIFEREX is generally easier to obtain than

NU-IRON.

The important thing to remember about iron is that too little or too much can

cause devastating health problems. One should be more concerned, though, if

serum iron and ferritin levels are a little high than if they are a little low.

As stated earlier, the generally accepted " normal " ranges of serum iron and

ferritin are higher than what they should be for optimal health. If iron or

ferritin levels are slightly high, the best therapy may be to simply donate

blood occasionally.

One possible alternative to iron supplements in mild cases of anemia is a

combination of high doses of folic acid and vitamin B-12. A typical dose might

be 2000-5000 micrograms of each per day. Whether using iron, folic acid, B-12 or

any combination, it is important to have blood tests before and after any

significant change in supplementation to find out what effect the

supplementation is having. The combination of high dose folic acid and B-12 with

low-dose iron may take an individual from mild anemia to iron overload if the

blood tests are not performed.