iron?

[arguchik]

(edited to remove identifying information because i was referring to someone else's locked LJ entries...)

a friend's iron transfusion posts have me wondering about my own iron levels. because her posts have made me curious, i've been reading about iron deficiency and thinking about the symptoms.

now, self-diagnosis is never a good idea. however, there are a few things about my health over the last couple of years that would make more sense if i assumed that i'm low in iron. i have been getting increasingly lethargic, tire a lot more easily than i used to, and my lower inner eyelids don't look all that red to me. i looked at the USRDA for iron for premenopausal women (if you're curious, click here and scroll down to the chart), and there is no way i'm getting anywhere near the recommended 18mg per day if it's true that 3oz. of beef has only about 3mg of iron in it. how does anyone get that much iron per day??? here's the clincher, though: right about 2 years ago i went off the pill, for various reasons. my periods are a lot heavier when i'm not on the pill. they still aren't particularly heavy when compared to one of my older sister's, or to what some of my friends report (though i've never seen firsthand how much these women actually bleed--perhaps this is just a difference of perception), but i'd say i bleed at least twice as much as i did while on the pill.

[pauses briefly to wonder if that's TMI for a public post... bah. screwit.]

so anyway, i'm thinking of taking supplemental iron, and because it seems to really help with iron absorption, i plan to take it with vitamin C. (perhaps i'll just wash the iron down with my fizzy vites.)

i know, i know...i should really go to the doctor and get a CBC, iron levels checked, etc. i don't feel like it. i have a bad attitude about getting poked, prodded, measured, calculated out, and summed up. and no, that doesn't mean i'm afraid of needles. i'm just tired of the endless surveillance metrics.

Comments

[arguchik.livejournal.com]

hmmmm. sure, i'll try the stuff you have. i'm wondering how to manage the iron and calcium thing, though, since i take a calcium supplement (and need to--my mom has osteoporosis and both older sisters have osteopenia) and eat a fair amount of dairy. i'm assuming i should just take the iron at a time when i'm *not* having dairy (probably dinnertime for me, since i have milk at breakfast and often eat yogurt or cheese for lunch). what's the time frame on that, do you know? like...should i wait 2 hours after taking iron to have any calcium, or 4 hours, or 30 minutes...?

FWIW...i always eat plain hamburgers, and never cheezzzzeburgerzzz. :-d