<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>>

 

Thanks, to all the people who wrote about managing their ferritin levels.
It's hard to summarize because the responses are very individual, but almost
everyone acknowledges that it's a long slow process raising ferritin up to
normal levels. (I hope this comes out without all the = signs, etc. If it
doesn't, maybe someone could tell me how to avoid them..)

 

People reported being low on ferritin for up to nine years after going on
the GF diet. Supplements they've taken include Ferrous Gluconate (Fergon),
Repliva, Ferro-Sequel, Niferrin, and taking Nettle Tea and eating red meat
for iron. One person took three iron shots, which worked.  Some were able to
return to normal levels without supplements. Someone wrote that going on
natural thyroid medication helped. Others said that low iron was tied to
menstrual cycles, and rose once they no longer cycled. One person noted that
you have to be careful to avoid high ferritin, too, by too much
supplementation. However, many people need to take iron for an extended
period of time.

 

Here's one message that includes a bit of a caution about raising ferritin
up only to have it lower again:

 

I have suffered from low iron for many many years prior to my diagnosis.  It
was pretty much my only symptom of CD other than reflux, which of course
never led the doctors to figure out what I had.  After going GF, I still had
to take iron to raise my levels, including to raise my ferritin from a 4.  I
took the iron for months, got my ferritin level up to 24, then stopped
taking the iron.  I was in the bottom of the normal range and they told me
to stop taking it.  I guess the doctor (and me too) figured I would be
absorbing iron on my own now that I'm healing from being on the diet.  

 

Well, 2 years later, here I am with a ferritin level of 5!  So I really
strongly recommend that you continue taking iron and having your blood
levels checked.  If you continue to have the blood checked and find that you
can maintain a good level w/o taking the iron, then great.  But don't stop
taking it and assume that it is fine.  You may slip back down again.  I'm
sorry that I stopped taking it.  I have read that an optimal ferritin level
is over 70.  5 is a long way from that and will take me many months or even
years to get there.  I'm thinking that I may always need a small dose of
iron to maintain my levels once they get where they should be.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thanks again to everyone who responded --  Diana

 


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