Effects of a Ferritin Count of 3

For you to be training and racing with those kinds of numbers is very questionable. You should discuss with your doctor and coach about how best to manage the situation.

I will take this opportunity to introduce the topic of "leaky gut syndrome", which underlies many issues in runners, including low iron. There was a thread on this last week featuring this article:

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2011/03/01/134009534/cows-first-milk-an-udderly-new-sports-drink

I followed up on the topic and am fairly convinced that my own low iron over the years stems from LGS. I have started to take colostrum and in a matter of days have noticed a definite improvement in symptoms.

Good luck, and be sure to follow-up.

you are a f***ing idiot & charlatan

this gal has either menorrhagia &/or poor diet & you are trying to sell her shit !

The fact that medical advice is being doled out on a running website is extremely irresponsible, scary, and dangerous. In short, if you have medical questions, you should consult your physician.

A ferritin of 3 will have a huge impact your running. A teammate of mine really struggled at 10 and I can only imagine the impact being far more severe when you're down at 3. Have you talked about possibly getting an IV infusion to get things boosted quickly and then go on a regular supplement to keep them steady? To echo the reasonable posters, you should definitely work with your doctor to fix this as soon as you can.

Take 65mg of ferrous sulfate three times per day with meals. And yes, it is affecting your running probably more than you could imagine.

And I'm actually going to disagree with other posters on seeing your doctor. Most doctors I have visited with ferritin issues usually just pay very little attention to it. They will tell you that the level is pretty low, but not necessarily a huge immediate concern (IT IS!!!!).

My level was at 7 and I was running a 2-mile about 40 seconds slower outdoor with low ferritin than I was indoor with normal ferritin levels.

I feel almost honored to be insulted by you, considering your troll...er posting history. Unfortunately it is impossible to be honored by a gluteal carbuncle.Note the second sentence of my original post:"You should discuss with your doctor and coach about how best to manage the situation."I then shared my personal experiences with a lifelong issue, of which you are obviously ignorant.

ventolin^3 wrote:

you are a f***ing idiot & charlatan

this gal has either menorrhagia &/or poor diet & you are trying to sell her shit !

Here is a good reference article on the topic:

http://www.trackandfieldnews.com/hs/coachscorner/20051215.html

I will take this opportunity to introduce the topic of "leaky gut syndrome",

You just wanted an excuse to talk crap about something you think you know a lot about.

It's not even real you moron.

ironmandude wrote:

And I'm actually going to disagree with other posters on seeing your doctor. Most doctors I have visited with ferritin issues usually just pay very little attention to it. They will tell you that the level is pretty low, but not necessarily a huge immediate concern (IT IS!!!!).

Any competent doctor will ABSOLUTELY pay attention to a ferritin of 3, especially with the low hemoglobin. Since she's managed to get it that low there could very well be other issues going on that need to be ruled out. Just taking supplements and hoping for the best is a horrible idea.

Many athletes struggle with this, especially girls. A ferritin score of 3 basically means you can't transport oxygen effectively to your muscles no matter how many miles you put in. Since you know your score of 3, skip your doctor, they don't know how to fix this anyway.

Do this under your parents supervision:

-take 3 65mg iron pills a day (all at once with no calcium)

-eat meat at least 3 times a week, and some spinach for dinner (spinich salad is great).

-scale back your workouts for a couple of weeks, don't stop, but don't hammer either.

After a month or so you will start to return to normal, after two months, have your iron checked again for ferritin.

A good distance runner range for success with ferritin is 50-100. Most of my athletes are over 100 and it helps a ton, just try not to go any higher than that.

Good luck, you can recover from this, it just takes time and patience.

I had this same problem during cross country! I'd been running varsity, but all season I'd been slipping, to the point where I was collapsing during races. We had no idea what was wrong, but finally found out it was the iron deficiency. I wasn't quite as bad as you are (my ferritin was 6), but it still ruined my season - I missed out on states and everything. Definitely talk to your doctor, but like someone mentioned, they might not know much about it - we had to bring all this research we'd done to my doctor to prove to her that this was actually an issue. Anyways, I've been on three 325mg pills daily, plus trying to eat more iron, and it has helped SO much. My ferritin's up to 32 (you want to try to get into the 50s or 60s, though), my mile time during indoor track improved by twenty seconds (to a 5:29), and I have so much more energy now. I know a few other girls who had this, and they went through similar stuff. If you get on the pills, you should start improving again in a month or two. Be patient - you will get better!

I was taking just one 325 mg tab and I couldn't use the bathroom (constipated). This caused me to gain a couple of pounds so I stopped last week. Not sure what to do next.

FYI read michael colgan's article mentioned on an earlier thread here before you take any iron pills. He says certain types of iron pills are dangerous...he also says you need ferrous gluconate and just one per day. 300 mg. Plus some supplements and meal-timing.

But again I had constipation. No one else has had that problem with the iron?

completely random person wrote:

I was taking just one 325 mg tab and I couldn't use the bathroom (constipated). This caused me to gain a couple of pounds so I stopped last week. Not sure what to do next.

FYI read michael colgan's article mentioned on an earlier thread here before you take any iron pills. He says certain types of iron pills are dangerous...he also says you need ferrous gluconate and just one per day. 300 mg. Plus some supplements and meal-timing.

But again I had constipation. No one else has had that problem with the iron?

Constipation is a very common side effect of iron supplementation, which is why I prescribe colace or senna (stool softeners) as well when I prescribe FeSo4 (usually 325mg three times a day).

*FeSO4

(For those that will find any excuse to jump all over a poster)

Hiya folks wrote:

completely random person wrote:

I was taking just one 325 mg tab and I couldn't use the bathroom (constipated). This caused me to gain a couple of pounds so I stopped last week. Not sure what to do next.

FYI read michael colgan's article mentioned on an earlier thread here before you take any iron pills. He says certain types of iron pills are dangerous...he also says you need ferrous gluconate and just one per day. 300 mg. Plus some supplements and meal-timing.

But again I had constipation. No one else has had that problem with the iron?

Constipation is a very common side effect of iron supplementation, which is why I prescribe colace or senna (stool softeners) as well when I prescribe FeSo4 (usually 325mg three times a day).

I read collace was recommended somewhere, but then when you read on the box it says not to take more than one week without seeing a doc. Just wondering might you happen to be a doc? Not meant negatively I would just like positive confirmation those would be safe to take for, like, ever, for at least 4-6 months.

Also common for the constipation to cause weight gain?

I really don't want to be taking laxatives forever. Even 4-6 months seems questionable in light of the instructions on the box. Anyone done that? Also if you get your SF higher, can you then stop supplementing with iron, or do you have to keep supplementing forever to keep it high enough?

I'd love to hear anyone's experience on this.

Thanks for the post.

I understand, Although I am 49,am a female long distance half-marathon runner-- winning brackets.. and yes if you don't get those numbers up your once perfect body will breakdown, this past year my legs began to ache, no I realize there wasn't oxygen in them, imagine the damage and recovery time delayed. Blood work showed hemoglobin9,hematocit30, ferritin3,iron18... obviously very low. Still no answers,... iron pills... three miles is debilitating, mentally its tearing me up, I have to run. Please don't stress your young body, get well, you have many years to live