Iron Deficiency - How To Get Your Iron Up & Keep It Up
The number of people I see walking around with low iron levels for who knows how long is too many. These people are often tired, they may be experiencing shortness of breath with exercise, hair loss, increased heart rate or heart palpitations, and dizziness. If this sounds familiar, the first step is getting your iron levels checked. Ferritin, which is your storage form of iron, is the best marker to diagnose an iron deficiency. This testing can be done either through your medical doctor or a naturopathic doctor such as myself.
Once we know what your iron levels are, we can choose the best route to correct your iron deficiency. I wouldn’t call myself a naturopathic doctor though if I didn’t first answer the question of why is your iron low? There are 3 main factors to think about in understanding why an iron deficiency is present.
Are you getting enough iron in your diet?
Vegetarian or vegan diets are more likely to lead to iron deficiencies.
Are you absorbing the iron in your diet?
Digestive concerns may impact absorption of dietary iron.
Are you losing too much iron on a regular basis?
Heavy menstrual periods are a common cause of this.
Depending on the severity of your iron deficiency there are a few options for increasing iron levels:
Increasing dietary iron intake
This may be adequate when iron levels are mildly low and can include increasing red meat intake to 2x per week, and incorporating other iron-rich foods on a regular basis such as spinach, oats, tofu, soybeans, lentils, beans, chickpeas. Cooking with cast iron may also increase iron content of your food.
Iron supplementation
Taking an oral iron supplement may be necessary for a period of time (usually at least 3 months before re-testing iron levels) to correct a moderate to severe iron deficiency. It’s important to make sure you’re taking a form of iron that will be well tolerated in a way that optimizes absorption.
Iron infusion
If an iron deficiency is severe or oral iron supplementation is not tolerated, an iron infusion may be necessary. This involves infusing high amounts of iron directly into the blood stream to bypass issues around absorption. As a naturopathic doctor I provide iron infusions which can be life changing for many people.
Once your iron levels have improved, how do we keep them up? Maintaining adequate iron intake in your diet is essential. But we also need to look at addressing the underlying factors as to why your iron levels were low in the first place. This may include improving digestive function or managing heavy menstrual periods.
If you suspect an iron deficiency or have struggled with one for awhile, please reach out so we can discuss your options and get you feeling better.
In good health,
Dr. Meghan Dougan,
Naturopathic Doctor