Can a multivitamin be used as a daily iron supplement?

david45 wrote:

stan the corgi wrote:

Read the label. If you are concerned, get your levels checked.

The doctor literally says he can't check iron levels

Hi David45, if you have anemia, a normal bloodtest called a CBC (complete blood count) will detect it. Your RBC, hemoglobin, or hematocrit will be lower than normal... or at least that's what a simple google search found. In my case RBC was 5.29 (range 4.2-6.00), hemoglobin 16.3 (range 13.2-18), and hemotocrit 52.1 (range 43.0-60.0).

If you're in those normal ranges, you don't have iron deficiency anemia.

OTOH, women who are experiencing an unexplained decline in performance might want to get their ferritin levels checked, too. Low but still within the "normal' range has been known to adversely affect performance in female runners.

The test came back for ferritn, and it is in the low side of the healthy range

david45 wrote:

The test came back for ferritn, and it is in the low side of the healthy range

Well then. You running isn’t being effected by your ferritin level.

elvid32 wrote:

david45 wrote:

The test came back for ferritn, and it is in the low side of the healthy range

Well then. You running isn’t being effected by your ferritin level.

But is it being low still a problem?

david45 wrote:

The test came back for ferritn, and it is in the low side of the healthy range

So it's in the healthy range. That's good since it rules out an iron deficiency as a possible explanation for your "slow" training pace.

The "slow" training pace could be due to a mental block. It's possible that you're too obsessed with monitoring your heart rate that it's causing you to run slower. Do me a favor and go run an all-out mile on a track within the next week. I would like you to provide splits for each lap. This will help in giving you a range of training paces to target.

Hope your first two days of college went well!

david45 wrote:

elvid32 wrote:

Well then. You running isn’t being effected by your ferritin level.

But is it being low still a problem?

No. It is still in the healthy range. It would be a problem if it would outside the healthy range.

david45 wrote:

elvid32 wrote:

Well then. You running isn’t being effected by your ferritin level.

But is it being low still a problem?

Nope

David-

What was your ferritin number?

Most doctors don’t have a clue about running and what ferritin numbers should be for a distance runner. If your doctor said it was in the normal range that was likely a number that applied to a normal person who is not an endurance athlete.

My daughter’s came back at 30. Her doctor said this was fine. Most coaches would say this is low and that she should supplement. 50-80 is a better range for females. She is supplementing with liquid iron, Floradix.

CCB wrote:

David-

What was your ferritin number?

Most doctors don’t have a clue about running and what ferritin numbers should be for a distance runner. If your doctor said it was in the normal range that was likely a number that applied to a normal person who is not an endurance athlete.

My daughter’s came back at 30. Her doctor said this was fine. Most coaches would say this is low and that she should supplement. 50-80 is a better range for females. She is supplementing with liquid iron, Floradix.

My ferritin came back as 135. I am a male.

david45 wrote:

CCB wrote:

David-

What was your ferritin number?

Most doctors don’t have a clue about running and what ferritin numbers should be for a distance runner. If your doctor said it was in the normal range that was likely a number that applied to a normal person who is not an endurance athlete.

My daughter’s came back at 30. Her doctor said this was fine. Most coaches would say this is low and that she should supplement. 50-80 is a better range for females. She is supplementing with liquid iron, Floradix.

My ferritin came back as 135. I am a male.

That's not on the low side of normal, that's middle normal. Bing/duck/google "normal serum ferritin range". The range should be on your lab report too.

Ok, yeah, that is not low. Your iron is fine.

Firstly, you said "During my routine check ups for anemia, the doctor said I have no issues."

You said your ferritin is 135.

I think what your doctor most probably meant with what they said that confused you is that they don't test directly for iron. Iron in the body isn't just 'iron' floating around, it is mainly complex forms e.g. bound to proteins, as heme compounds etc. The test for anaemia will tell you if your body is suffering as a consequence of lower levels of iron e.g. low RBC, hemoglobin etc.

Iron is one of the few supplements where it really is not safe to just randomly put yourself on supplements, especially as a male. As an (American?) male, if you're not vegetarian anyway, I'm sure you eat red meat several times a week, and you probably get more than enough in your daily diet.

There is no regulatory mechanism for excreting excess dietary iron (yes, we lose small amounts, but it is not really to maintain levels).

As the body cannot really excrete excess iron, it stores it.

It stores it in places like the heart, liver.

You do not want this to happen to excess.

Only take an iron supplement if you need to.

It is not a good thing to have an excess of.

CCB wrote:

Ok, yeah, that is not low. Your iron is fine.

So why the hell am I so slow?

david45 wrote:

CCB wrote:

Ok, yeah, that is not low. Your iron is fine.

So why the hell am I so slow?

Finally, there is that famous question again

Not kidding wrote:

david45 wrote:

So why the hell am I so slow?

Finally, there is that famous question again

Is there any other health problems that could be causing my problems besides low ferritin levels?

david45 wrote:

Not kidding wrote:

Finally, there is that famous question again

Mental

Is there any other health problems that could be causing my problems besides low ferritin levels?

Not kidding wrote:

david45 wrote:

Mental

Is there any other health problems that could be causing my problems besides low ferritin levels?

I was talking about physical health problems

david45 wrote:

Not kidding wrote:

I was talking about physical health problems

The brain is a physical part of your body.

david45 wrote:

Not kidding wrote:

I was talking about physical health problems

No