Low ferritin and hair loss

[Justy]

I noticed a big shed last fall that really scared me. I went searching for possible causes and found this site and CO washing. The continuous shedding seemed to stop after I switched to CO and got rid of sulfates in my hair care, but the hair didn't really come back. It is like the existing hairs will keep growing, much slower than normal, but regrowth isn't happening or at least I can't see it.

I had my thyroid and iron blood work done and was told the levels were quite good, however when the ferritin levels came back 8 weeks ago I got a message from my doctor saying the levels were "quite low" and I should start taking supplements.

I saw the doctor this week to find out the actual level and see if it was time to get more blood work done. She told me that my ferritin level was 7 she said it should be at least 50 for good health. I think it needs to be more like 70 for hair growth so I have a long way to go. She doesn't even want me to get the blood work done until I've been on iron suppliments for 6 months.

I have been taking 35 ml each morning of "Floradix Formula (http://www.nutritionhouse.com/item.asp?itemid=451&product=Salus_Floradix_Formula_Liquid_Iron_-_500_ml)" by Salus it is a liquid Iron and vitamins formula which is easy to absorb and doesn't upset my stomach. The bottle recommends 10 ml for the 'average' person, but with my low iron levels the health food assistant suggested between 30-60 ml for me. I have only been taking 30 ml once a day instead of twice a day but I am open to taking the 2nd dose if anyone thinks it would be helpful.

I think I've not been doing the best I could with the supplements though, after reading DarkBeauty (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/member.php?u=40661)'s thread about 'Anemia and hair loss (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=75550)' I probably shouldn't be taking my iron and then having my morning coffee within 1/2 hr. Would I be better off taking the iron after work with a glass of juice rather than in the morning within an hour of my coffee?

How long can it take for the hair to start growing again? I look at my hairline and I can see the gaps where the hair use to be, I can see my forehead getting taller. I never thought that my hair defined me, and it doesn't, but the women in my family have never had any issues with hair loss so it really wasn't on my radar that it could happen to me. I keep trying to stay calm about it because I know that stress can cause or increase shedding, and at this point I don't feel like I can afford to increase the hair loss beyond what is happening medically. I take heart in the fact that my energy levels are starting to come back. At least I know that my body is getting and using some of the extra iron I am giving it.

[PeacenQuietGal]

Justy I've had low iron for quite a while myself. It is so hard to get iron actually in your blood from what you take in from your diet! What i did, besides taking the suplements, was I always chose beef over chicken, and Luckily I Looove oysters, so Iate them every chance I got. Also kidney beans, lentils, and greens, although some people say that spinach is a toss-up - I was told to eat it if I like it - which I did. Also Cream of Wheat, which I do not care for, is very high in iron. I geuss if you add cheddar cheese and maybe some garlic that would help it, but I much prefer grits. Liverwurst is tasty spread over wheat crackers, too.

Anyway, try to get as much in your actuall diet, as well as being scrupulous with taking your supplements.

I do remember that I was told not to take the iron pill with coffee.
I also remember that vitamin C is necesary for Iron absorbtion.

I had the idea to cook Spaghetti Sauce in cast iron skillet because the acidic tomatoes help absorb iron from the pot, but my doctor laughed at this. However I still think the idea has merit.

Anyway I hope you get your Vim and Vigor back soon!!!

[Lady Dragon]

Oh geeze maybe that is what has been going on with me... I lose hair like crazy and my iron levels are always low.
Thanks for sharing it really opened my eyes.
I should have known this having worked in the health/weight loss/supplements game for a while.
Most of the clients at the weight loss clinic I worked at noticed changes to their hair and nails in their first 3 months of being on supplements.

[Khiwanean]

I've heard cooking with a cast iron skillet can increase the iron content of food, but since PeacenQuietGal said her doctor laughed when she brought it up I went to Google to see what I could find. This (http://whatscookingamerica.net/Information/IronCastIron.htm) is one of the links that popped up, so I'm also learning toward it really does work.

ETA: On the other hand, cast iron skillets are really heavy.

[PeacenQuietGal]

Yeeeaaahhh Khiwanean, i just may show that to my Dear Doc! Thank you for the excellent article! Btw cast iron is heavy, yet I use it on my glass-top range (but i hate that thing anyway, so if it goes - it will be a good excuse to get a gas one!)

Anyway, I do not not mean to stray from the topic - apparently cooking in Cast Iron would make a mighty contribution towards increasing one's iron!

[MoonLover]

Justy, I'm sorry that this is happening but I think this can get better.

Even though I sometimes feel like I shed more than I should, it has become a lot less over the past year and a half-ish. My hair looks A LOT better, I see much less scalp and it's growing at a pretty good rate.

I was always anemic as a teenager and even into the beginning of my 20s. I have been on and off all kinds of iron supplements but I never got out of the borderline anemic range. Then, I moved in with my boyfriend who loves to cook and loves meat. He's a big guy and says he can't maintain his muscle without meat at every meal. So I started to eat a lot more meat- more meat than I have probably ever eaten.

When I went to donate blood last year, I made sure they checked my iron because I know anemics can't give blood. I was told it was good- somewhere in the high 40s. That was about six months into living with my bf. Last month I had a regular blood test and my iron came back at 94!!! I practically beamed when my doctor told me.

So although supplements work for some people, they never worked well for me. I actually gave up on them a couple of years ago.PeacenQuietGal's suggestions on eating are very good. I believe you can get over this but you must eat!

[BlazingHeart]

With the supplements, it does matter which kind you take and what other things you consume at the same time. Ferrous gluconate is VASTLY more absorbable (and easier on the stomach) than ferrous oxide (which is what is in most iron pills). Taking your vitamins with a glass of juice after work should give you better absorbtion of the iron, definitely.

Some people never absorb well from supplements, though. My mother and I both have a tendancy towards mild anemia that requires both dietary and supplemental iron to get us into the 'normal' range.

As far as hair recovery, you should start seeing regrowth within 3-6 months of raising your iron levels. Many people do start seeing regrowth before they hit 'normal' if they have had major hairloss, but I don't know the percentages, sorry.

~Blaze

[oktobergoud]

Aaah I always take my iron pill in the morning (as it says so) but I also drink coffee! No help here but will be taking the pill after work as well :o Hopefully it will work better :)

[ange1ito]

I had to change my eating habit's too due to uncontollable shedding. I also took supplement's, but the only change came when I began to change how i eat ant specifically what. My doctor also told me to avoid caffeine based drinks particularly with food, and I always drink lots of Vitamin C drinks to absorb the iron better. My eating habits have been really poor since my mid 20's and at 37 the level's plummeted so low it has taken over a year of eating iron rich foods to even start a reverse in the cycle. Don't focus too much on the shedding and keep positive, it shall get better as you change up your pattern's.

[Justy]

With the supplements, it does matter which kind you take and what other things you consume at the same time. Ferrous gluconate is VASTLY more absorbable (and easier on the stomach) than ferrous oxide (which is what is in most iron pills). Taking your vitamins with a glass of juice after work should give you better absorbtion of the iron, definitely.

As far as hair recovery, you should start seeing regrowth within 3-6 months of raising your iron levels. Many people do start seeing regrowth before they hit 'normal' if they have had major hairloss, but I don't know the percentages, sorry.

~Blaze
Thanks everyone for the feedback! I'll definitely be changing when I take my iron, thankfully I'm taking Ferrous gluconate which Blaze indicated is more absorbable so that is a good thing. :) Now I just have to add more iron rich foods into my diet and hopefully I'll start seeing some improvements in a few months. I'll just have to think positive and be patient.

[torrilin]

I've heard cooking with a cast iron skillet can increase the iron content of food, but since PeacenQuietGal said her doctor laughed when she brought it up I went to Google to see what I could find. This (http://whatscookingamerica.net/Information/IronCastIron.htm) is one of the links that popped up, so I'm also learning toward it really does work.

ETA: On the other hand, cast iron skillets are really heavy.

Most of the information I've seen on cooking in cast iron is it's excellent as preventative iron supplementation. It will mean you're getting slightly more iron in your diet, and anything cooked in the pan is a very slight source of iron. Since humans generally absorb nutrients better from food than in pill form, for reasons that we don't fully understand yet, this is a good thing for most people. It takes some serious effort to manage a nutrient overdose from food sources alone.

But! If you test as even slightly anemic, just switching to a cast iron pan will not cure you. And someone in dire straits like Justy... really no. It won't even begin to compensate.

And while it's really bloody hard to overdose off just food... if you're on a supplementation routine for a deficiency disease, it is possible to overdose. And overdosing iron is bad. So it's really important to stick to the routine the doctor prescribes, and not go whole hog doing everything possible. So yeah, wait on the cast iron cookware til your doc is happy with your test results and is willing to try taking you off the supplements. That is when the microdosing from the pan can work with your diet to help prevent relapses.

[curlytiff27]

I just wanted to bump this and see if the OP was still taking the Floradix? I was just dx today with thyroid issues but my Vitamin D and Ferritin are low...I am thinking that the thyroid issues may be stemming from the Ferritin and Vit D being low. Anyways, I am taking the floradix but only 10 mls tiwce daily. Any insight would be great...just looking for this horrendous shed to stop! Its not over the 100 per day, but about 40-60ish

[Inching Along]

I am now curious about my shedding...for the past 5 years! I have autoimmune thyroid, had low vitamin D for quite a while and struggled to bring it up even with supplementation, and recently was tested for ferritin, which is at 25. So I'm on supplementation. Would love to hear others' experiences. My hair stopped shedding so much in the late summer this year; I was thinking it was because I was getting more vitamin D with the sun, but I had also been taking the iron supplements for a couple of months. But recently I started shedding a lot again (I'm talking more than 200 hairs each washing, even with scalp brushings each day), and I had stopped taking the supplements for a while. I am suspecting that's the culprit! We shall see...

[teb]

I am going to get tested next month as thats when I finally get medical insurance, yeaaa! Good supplements that worked for me in the past to help curtail shedding, nettle tea, spirulina, folic acid and garlic.

[Justy]

I just wanted to bump this and see if the OP was still taking the Floradix? I was just dx today with thyroid issues but my Vitamin D and Ferritin are low...I am thinking that the thyroid issues may be stemming from the Ferritin and Vit D being low. Anyways, I am taking the floradix but only 10 mls tiwce daily. Any insight would be great...just looking for this horrendous shed to stop! Its not over the 100 per day, but about 40-60ish
I was taking Floradix until last week. I took 30ml once a day and was able to get my ferritin up to 29 from 7. The shedding did seem to slow down and I have cute flyaway new growth visible at my temples that even my mother noticed. :)

I still have a long way to go before I'm at an ideal ferritin level. My doctor prescribed a high dose iron pill to take once a day, 'PALAFeR'. Each pill is 300 mg ferrous fumarate, equivalant to 100mg elemental iron. At only $10 for 30 days worth this is much more cost effective for me than the Floradix at equivalant dosages. I'll take this for a few months and then get my ferritin tested again.

[Kapri]

Do look into Blackstrap molasses too. Great for iron related ailments and fab if you get heavy periods!
There are loads of articles if you google them.
x

http://www.ehow.com/facts_5300582_health-benefits-blackstrap-molasses.html

[Justy]

Great idea! I've been making an effort to eat more iron rich foods, real food is better than supplements when possible. It's always nice to learn of new ones, and be reminded of ones I had forgotten about. :)