Iron supplementation

Jing

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What could be the reasons I need to supplement with so much iron? Atm I'm taking 210mg elemental iron from biglycinate 70mg 3x daily. Doing this inproves my fatigue by atleast 50% had a ferritin blood test last August came back at 299 ug/l
 

Beastmode

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Peat would say it's very dangerous to be supplementing iron. If you're fatigued, you probably have too much dysregulated iron which is bound in the tissues.

299 ferritin is pretty high, and by itself, isn't a measure of iron status. Some would say this is a potential sign of iron overload.

I've been digging into Morley Robbin's work of late on this subject. His book "Cure your fatigue" dives right into the very misconception of iron and it's dangers. Also, what to do about it.
 
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Jing

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Peat would say it's very dangerous to be supplementing iron. If you're fatigued, you probably have too much dysregulated iron which is bound in the tissues.

299 ferritin is pretty high, and by itself, isn't a measure of iron status. Some would say this is a potential sign of iron overload.

I've been digging into Morley Robbin's work of late on this subject. His book "Cure your fatigue" dives right into the very misconception of iron and it's dangers. Also, what to do about it.
If I have too much iron why does iron supplements help my fatigue though? I can't function properly at all without high doses
 

Beastmode

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If I have too much iron why does iron supplements help my fatigue though? I can't function properly at all without high doses
Could be placebo. I mean that in a respectful way.

Something Peat sent me before when I was exploring the subject:

Front. Neurosci., 19 February 2019 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2019.00085
Deciphering the Iron Side of Stroke: Neurodegeneration at the Crossroads Between Iron Dyshomeostasis, Excitotoxicity, and Ferroptosis
Núria DeGregorio-Rocasolano1, Octavi Martí-Sistac1,2* and Teresa Gasull1*
• 1Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology Research Group, Department of Neurosciences, Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), Badalona, Spain
• 2Department of Cellular Biology, Physiology and Immunology, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain
In general, iron represents a double-edged sword in metabolism in most tissues, especially in the brain. Although the high metabolic demands of brain cells require iron as a redox-active metal for ATP-producing enzymes, the brain is highly vulnerable to the devastating consequences of excessive iron-induced oxidative stress and, as recently found, to ferroptosis as well. The blood–brain barrier (BBB) protects the brain from fluctuations in systemic iron. Under pathological conditions, especially in acute brain pathologies such as stroke, the BBB is disrupted, and iron pools from the blood gain sudden access to the brain parenchyma, which is crucial in mediating stroke-induced neurodegeneration. Each brain cell type reacts with changes in their expression of proteins involved in iron uptake, efflux, storage, and mobilization to preserve its internal iron homeostasis, with specific organelles such as mitochondria showing specialized responses. However, during ischemia, neurons are challenged with excess extracellular glutamate in the presence of high levels of extracellular iron; this causes glutamate receptor overactivation that boosts neuronal iron uptake and a subsequent overproduction of membrane peroxides. This glutamate-driven neuronal death can be attenuated by iron-chelating compounds or free radical scavenger molecules. Moreover, vascular wall rupture in hemorrhagic stroke results in the accumulation and lysis of iron-rich red blood cells at the brain parenchyma and the subsequent presence of hemoglobin and heme iron at the extracellular milieu, thereby contributing to iron-induced lipid peroxidation and cell death. This review summarizes recent progresses made in understanding the ferroptosis component underlying both ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke subtypes.
 
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Jing

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Could be placebo. I mean that in a respectful way.
Nope 100% not a placebo, I've come off iron or reduced the dosages several times with same results, there's no way I go from barely functioning not being able to go gym, feel severely drained, head in a constant foggy state to decent energy ,clear headed , can actually function because of placebo. And its not like I actually was thinking the iron supplements was going to work when I first started taking them anyways.
 

Andy316

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Nope 100% not a placebo, I've come off iron or reduced the dosages several times with same results, there's no way I go from barely functioning not being able to go gym, feel severely drained, head in a constant foggy state to decent energy ,clear headed , can actually function because of placebo. And its not like I actually was thinking the iron supplements was going to work when I first started taking them anyways.
@Jing Your experience resonates mine when I last took iron some years ago (It was the only supplement that actually helped me eliminate my fatigue and hair shedding). I believe foods high in Manganese, turmeric, dairy should be kept low to keep iron levels steady.
 

sunny

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This is not an answer to your question, but maybe something that might help you figure out - in an interview Peat said anemia is not low iron, it is low blood- low hematocrit and low hemoglobin.
 

GorillaHead

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I just want to add that iron has been amazing for me. I starred supplementing and my nasal congestion is gone and my asthma significantly reduced.

i think intermittent 10mg dosages of iron is not unsafe. this forum focuses too much on lab studies and biochemistry and neglects epidemiological studies which hold way more water
 

Julles

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Jan 19, 2017
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bump.
because there is something missing about iron that no one yet as been able to figure out and would like to read more reports about iron supplementation and why many feel good after increasing the intake.
 

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