Need Help Understanding My Ferritin Issue

[Milan555]

Hi everyone, I'm a male 29 years old. I just received my latest Ferritin level back, and it's 36 (range of 30 - some high number). I'm not taking any iron supplementation.

Most Relevant Backstory

I took high levels of zinc in year 2017 (anywhere from 30-55mg daily) without any copper. The reason for the high zinc was mainly to boost testosterone. Looking back, the period of time when I was taking zinc is when I started noticing more fatigue building up in me. And I haven't felt myself since then, and its now 2019. It seems that I may have caused a very bad mineral imbalance at the time I was supplementing. Whether or not this same issue has remained to this day is what I am trying to figure out. My endocrinologist believes any imbalance would have resolved by now, after 1.5 years.


Current Blood Tests:

Ferritin - 36
RBC/Hb/HCT - Normal, top of range, no anemia
TSH - 1.2
Free T3 - 3.3 (range 2-4)
Ceruloplasmin - 20 (range 20-35)
Cortisol AM - 16 (towards top of range)
Cortisol PM - saliva test shows mid-range levels and normal curve


My symptoms are the following:

- Chronic exhaustion
- Low libido
- Low motivation, focus, concentration
- hard to exercise
-poor recovery from exercise, feeling sore and achy for days afterwards
- mentally feel slow like it's just not working as fast and efficient as it should

At this point, the main thing that looks off is the Ferritin of 36. My endocrinologist says most of the normal guys he sees have ferritin closer to 80. Not sure if my Ceruloplasmin level is fine, but I suspect its not since its borderline LOW. It feels like I have some absorption issue but not sure how.

My doctor had me do an occult stool blood test just to rule out any stool bleeding. I will get the results of this next week. If this test turns out negative, then I still won't know why my ferritin continues to show up on the low end.

Has anyone experienced anything similar to this and figured out the cause? I know @douglasek has been through this too due to excess zinc intake.

Just trying to resolve this ferritin issue so I feel myself again. Ferritin is the only thing that looks very off after doing a very comprehensive bloodwork (checking all hormones, inflammation, CBC, Vit D, B12, etc).

Please help!

 

[ChristineHou]

Please do not try to increase your ferritin. Look up all the iron articles by Morley Robbins on Gotmag.org. A real eye opener! Your problems may be due to a copper/iron disregulation as he states. Good luck

 

[magnesiumania]

Ferritin is merely a storage form of iron while iron is always in circulation. Thats why you need many markers to reveal how you circulate your iron.

 

[tankasnowgod]

Personally, I doubt it's an issue with iron levels. If you have Hemoglobin levels that are in the higher end of the normal range, that's the most important thing. A ferritin level of 36 is actually where you would want it to be, especially for protection against all the nasty degenerative diseases that iron can cause. This is discussed quite a bit on the forum, and by iron researchers like E.D. Weinberg. I would avoid any sort of iron supplements, and just eat a bit more red meat if you want to increase ferritin levels, but only slightly. Anthony Colpo, who was very active, found that a ferritin level of 40 was all that was needed to improve his exercise performance. You aren't far from that.

From what you describe, the lack of energy and sore muscles sound more like an excess of lactic acid than anything to do with iron or hemoglobin levels. You may want to look more into that.

 

[golder]

Hi everyone, I'm a male 29 years old. I just received my latest Ferritin level back, and it's 36 (range of 30 - some high number). I'm not taking any iron supplementation.

Most Relevant Backstory

I took high levels of zinc in year 2017 (anywhere from 30-55mg daily) without any copper. The reason for the high zinc was mainly to boost testosterone. Looking back, the period of time when I was taking zinc is when I started noticing more fatigue building up in me. And I haven't felt myself since then, and its now 2019. It seems that I may have caused a very bad mineral imbalance at the time I was supplementing. Whether or not this same issue has remained to this day is what I am trying to figure out. My endocrinologist believes any imbalance would have resolved by now, after 1.5 years.


Current Blood Tests:

Ferritin - 36
RBC/Hb/HCT - Normal, top of range, no anemia
TSH - 1.2
Free T3 - 3.3 (range 2-4)
Ceruloplasmin - 20 (range 20-35)
Cortisol AM - 16 (towards top of range)
Cortisol PM - saliva test shows mid-range levels and normal curve


My symptoms are the following:

- Chronic exhaustion
- Low libido
- Low motivation, focus, concentration
- hard to exercise
-poor recovery from exercise, feeling sore and achy for days afterwards
- mentally feel slow like it's just not working as fast and efficient as it should

At this point, the main thing that looks off is the Ferritin of 36. My endocrinologist says most of the normal guys he sees have ferritin closer to 80. Not sure if my Ceruloplasmin level is fine, but I suspect its not since its borderline LOW. It feels like I have some absorption issue but not sure how.

My doctor had me do an occult stool blood test just to rule out any stool bleeding. I will get the results of this next week. If this test turns out negative, then I still won't know why my ferritin continues to show up on the low end.

Has anyone experienced anything similar to this and figured out the cause? I know @douglasek has been through this too due to excess zinc intake.

Just trying to resolve this ferritin issue so I feel myself again. Ferritin is the only thing that looks very off after doing a very comprehensive bloodwork (checking all hormones, inflammation, CBC, Vit D, B12, etc).

Please help!

My bloods and symptoms are so similar to yours. Did you manage to address this? Im worried about blindly trying to raise ferritin given rays opinion on iron. Any help would be appreciated!

 

[magnesiumania]

My bloods and symptoms are so similar to yours. Did you manage to address this? Im worried about blindly trying to raise ferritin given rays opinion on iron. Any help would be appreciated!

Again ferritin is meaningless. High ferritin is a sure indication of inflammation. Ferritin is a cytokine. Most iron is stored in another protein called hemociderin. Most people have PLENTY of iron available but its stuck away in oragns, your eyes, tissues etc and degenerate them unless its managed and regulated by Cu, ceruloplasmin/ ferroxidase

 

[golder]

Again ferritin is meaningless. High ferritin is a sure indication of inflammation. Ferritin is a cytokine. Most iron is stored in another protein called hemociderin. Most people have PLENTY of iron available but its stuck away in oragns, your eyes, tissues etc and degenerate them unless its managed and regulated by Cu, ceruloplasmin/ ferroxidase

Thanks man, appreciate the detail. Do you think there is nothing to worry about when ferritin is so low in the blood (20 ug/L)
Presumably then my best bet would be to steadily raise copper through gradually increasing consumption of liver/oysters?
Really appreciate you explaining that for me, forgive the naivete!

 

[magnesiumania]

Yes, in fact low ferritin is preferable. Dietary copper helps as our soil is depleted of it and we dont get enough. Use red light to stimulate its activity and the copper-containing protein cytochrome c oxidase which deliver electrons to molecular oxygen at the terminal station of the electron transport chain.

 

[youngsinatra]

Yes, in fact low ferritin is preferable. Dietary copper helps as our soil is depleted of it and we dont get enough. Use red light to stimulate its activity and the copper-containing protein cytochrome c oxidase which deliver electrons to molecular oxygen at the terminal station of the electron transport chain.

It‘s making me really mad that today‘s agricultural farming methods are wrecking the mineral composition and uptake into the plants. Plus the fact that they spray inorganic copper sulfates on produce to keep off snails and fungi, that wreck our copper homeostasis as well.
Glyphosate, NPK-fertilizer and many more also disrupt copper uptake and utilization.

Do you think there are still reliable copper sources? Do you think local or organic produce is superior?

 

[golder]

It‘s making me really mad that today‘s agricultural farming methods are wrecking the mineral composition and uptake into the plants. Plus the fact that they spray inorganic copper sulfates on produce to keep off snails and fungi, that wreck our copper homeostasis as well.
Glyphosate, NPK-fertilizer and many more also disrupt copper uptake and utilization.

Do you think there are still reliable copper sources? Do you think local or organic produce is superior?

Presumably grass fed organic lambs liver has got to be a phenomenal copper source? Shame I absolutely detest it.

 

[youngsinatra]

Presumably grass fed organic lambs liver has got to be a phenomenal copper source? Shame I absolutely detest it.

Yes, or grass-fed calf liver, but I cannot handle the vitamin A load of it due to my personal case of vitamin A toxicity.

 

[golder]

Best source of copper for those of us that hate organ meats?

 

[youngsinatra]

Best source of copper for those of us that hate organ meats?

Organic mushrooms, dark chocolate or cacao in general, white potatoes, legumes.

 

[magnesiumania]

It‘s making me really mad that today‘s agricultural farming methods are wrecking the mineral composition and uptake into the plants. Plus the fact that they spray inorganic copper sulfates on produce to keep off snails and fungi, that wreck our copper homeostasis as well.
Glyphosate, NPK-fertilizer and many more also disrupt copper uptake and utilization.

Do you think there are still reliable copper sources? Do you think local or organic produce is superior?

Im sure organic is superior but not a garantee for quality. Youd really have to ask the specific farmer if minerals are put back into the soil. I take a multi nano-mineral sollution with 300mcg copper each day....

 

[magnesiumania]

Yes, or grass-fed calf liver, but I cannot handle the vitamin A load of it due to my personal case of vitamin A toxicity.

Do you perhaps expose yourself to alot of blue-light? Vitamin A bind covalently with MELANOPSIN (photoreceptor for blue light) and the bond is easily broken in the prescence of blue light and liberate retinol from opsins disrupting its cycle...This can lead to it converting to an aldehyde of retinol