Can too much iron cause problems for postmenopausal women?

[musicgirl]

Hi everyone,

I read an article in the latest issue of Mayo Clinic Women's Health Source, and it said that women who don't menstruate any more should not take a multi vitamin that contains iron, because it could cause a surplus of iron in the body.

I have been peri-menopausal for the past several years (long stretches with no periods) and I take a Nature Made multi that contains iron. I also eat a balanced diet. My "neurological" issue is nonepileptic seizures.

I am wondering if I may be getting too much iron and if that could cause problems.

Any ideas?
Musicgirl

[mrsdoubtfyre]

You can be tested to set your mind at rest.

The warning also pertains to those who have hemochromatosis, and have
not been identified. This genetic disease occurs in about 1 in 200 people. Women who have this lose blood monthly so that iron does not build up, but after menopause, the iron load can build up.

http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/hemochromatosis/index.htm

People who use acid blocking drugs every day for long periods of time
reduce iron absorption. Often they can become anemic because of it.
This is a reverse problem, but may reduce iron absorption from supplements.

[rose]

This is such an important issue. Very few people are tested for ferritin (most doctors assume that the usual iron tests are sufficient). I have been encouraging everyone to at least find out what their ferritin result is.

Ferritin is a more sensitive indicator of iron stores than the other tests. If first learned this when a rare doctor checked mine, and, in spite of all usual tests being mid normal range, my iron was low. In my case the low iron was due to insufficient stomach acid, which also led the way to my severe B12 malabsorption.

To complicate things further, low iron makes blood cells smaller, and low B12 can make them larger. So.....people with both can have normal size cells and even in rare cases smaller ones.

I requested a ferritin for my elderly aunt. The doc scoffed, but it came back 295 (with the high end of normal for her 233). We since discovered a colon tumor (benign), which may have caused the ferritin to be falsely elevated. We'll see.

Anyway, please everyone at least get a ferritin to get some idea where you are.

rose

[annelb]

I was looking over my blood tests that I have had and realized that none of my doctors have ever done any type of iron testing on me. I requested that I have a ferritin or TBIC. I had read that the ferritin can be unreliable when there is inflammation and I have an elevated hs-CRP.

My doctor turned me down :eek: :mad: He told me I did not need an iron test as I have never been anemic.

Prevalence of iron deficiency with and without anemia in recreationally active men and women. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=15942552&dopt=Abstract

OK, I am older that the subjects in this study and I am past menopause. But could I have iron overload? Frustrating.
Anne

[glenntaj]

--it is more common for pre-menopausal women, especially active ones who break down hemoglobin, to have iron deficiency, with or without anemia, and the prevalence of this reduces significantly with menopause.

Post-menopausal women are more likely to be diagnosed with high iron levels, though this is still not that common (it's somewhat more common in men).

http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=51031

http://womenshealth.about.com/od/commonhealthissues/a/ironoverload.htm

http://www.labtestsonline.org/understanding/analytes/iron/overview-2.html

[JudyLV]

Last spring my 15 year old daughter was found to be quite anemic. Her ferritin was 5 and her serum iron was 20. In January, after many months of taking Hematin, a bioavailable supplement, her serum iron was 140 but her ferritin was only 15. She was having a lot of nausea and diarrhea despite being on a gluten free diet. She was scoped (both ends) and found to have gastritis and vasculitis of the duodenum. Could this be a reason that her ferritin has only increased to 15? Her nutritionist and I are assuming that the nausea was due to her not being vigilant enough about the diet (i.e. not checking for hidden gluten in salad dressings or eating when there is a higher chance of cross contamination-like at a friends house).

I am a bit concerned about Rose's statement low iron was due to insufficient stomach acid because the treatment for the gastritis is an acid blocker. Hopefully this will only be needed for a short time.

--Judy

[mrsdoubtfyre]

impairs....IRON, calcium, zinc, folic acid and B12 absorption. All are dependent
on acid. Iron is often given with orange juice for this reason.

Ferritin is iron storage...it takes time to build that back up and requires
the proteins to be made for it. So low protein intake can be a problem too.

A hemoglobin level would return to normal before ferritin is restored.