Has anyone here suffered from low iron? And if so, what did you do?

My blood work came back today and all was normal except that I have low-iron. I have no bleeding from the pouch and I feel okay.

My doc wants me to take SLOW FE, one pill per day for three months and then re-test.

For some reason, this is common among k-pouch patients.
I always seem to have low iron, but I do have occasional bleeding.
The problem with the pills, for me anyway, is it thickens the stool and I have to intubate more often, thus causing more bleeding. So, my doc prescribes iron infusions. I get the iron over a course of 10 days by I.V.
If the pills work good for you, go with it. It will take a while before your levels come up.
By the way, if the pills bother your stomach, there are some prescription iron meds that are easier on the gut.

I have taken this for years. I also take over the counter Folic Acid. This assists with the absorbtion of the iron. Check with your Doctor about using this as a supplement.

I also am anemic. my doc wanted me to take slow fe, but i decided against it b/c it is time released and i figure those are not worth it for me. i got some supplements called "feosol" that are teeny triangle pills (so that even if they don't fully disolve, they should fit through the cath)
they instantly turned my output ink black, and it did get a bit thicker. i didn't take em long enough to notice if i had to go more often too.

i just got a juicer. i figure i'm gonna juice spinach into things, and beets (which are also supposed to be very high in iron) and eat more red meats. i've sorta always been slightly anemic, so they're not super concerned. so i'm trying to be very concious of what i eat.

I also thought about taking the flintstone chewables that have added iron. i know it's not the same amount, not by far. but i figure it's better than nothing.

i don't want the shots of iron b/c they can stain.

we'll see if anything i'm doing makes any difference. i hope so!

GNC has a really good chewable adult multi vit with iron that is so good that my hubby tells me that I taste like a steel beam!
They also have a very highly concentraed liquid iron suppliment...there are also dessicated liver suppliments for the courageous among you...
As for the juicer...If you really want an iron kick Cynnycal, juice parsley and cinlantro and well as any other 'green' herbs( not that one though! )into your drinks...they are full of iron...Also, a little known fact...dried fruits like apricots and dates supply a great number of concentrated vits and minerals including calcium and iron...and they are so much more pleasant than a shot in the butt
Be very careful of taking iron shots...they 'tatoo' you for a long time...it takes up to 5 years for the dark stains to be reabsorbed! (they look like bruises) I walked around with them for years..
Sharon

I use a chewable iron supplement from Nature's Plus (Chewable Iron plus Vitamin C & Herbs). I have no constipation, cramping, etc. with it, but mind you, I'm with a J-Pouch and not a K pouch.

Cynnycal, good on you for the juicer. I've used a carrot/beet/parsley combo for it's iron. The spinach might serve you better (iron-wise) if you cook it up in a iron skillet. I also find I do need to eat red meat a little more often than I thought as my system seems to absorb the heme iron a little better than the non-heme.

I understand that some of us experience low iron because of our absorbency and daily microscopic blood loss from catheter rubbing the walls of the pouch. I take NuIron which seems to absorb easily.

Thanks Lucky One. I will check into that for Chris with the k pouch and see if it is recommended.

quote:

If you really want an iron kick Cynnycal, juice parsley and cinlantro and well as any other 'green' herbs

Yes Sharon! I grow parsley, mint, basil, oregano etc and, since my j-pouch surgery 2 years ago, I've been adding herbs to my juices and all my meals. My diet is basically vegetarian and I was always anaemic. To my surprise, my recent blood results were excellent. I reckon it's the parsley. Also, I make a huge bottle of juice (carrots, cucumber, romaine/cos lettuce, watermelon and lots of parsley) every morning and drink it throughout the day. I don't take vitamins or iron supplements.

by adding vit C to your iron you increase the absorbability as well! Pumpkin goes really well with cilatro in a soup and I find that parsley orange looks funny but tastes just fine!
I use dried apricots and sweetpotatoes in a veal or lamb stew with loads of parsley and cilantro...yum!!!!
Sharon