In addition to common anemia symptoms, such as dizziness, shortness of breath, and fatigue, some people report back pain.
A case-control study reported all serum levels of minerals including Fe were significantly different in low back pain patients compared to healthy individuals (16). A strong link between serum iron and the severity of low back pain was reported (16).
Common areas of pain include ribs, spine, pelvis, breast bone, abdomen and long bones of the legs and arms.
The first cause of lower back pain is ischemia. "Ischemia" means lack of blood. Without adequate blood to provide nutrients and oxygen, soft tissues such as muscles, tendons, ligaments, and fascia build up lactic and other toxins and become painful.
It is not uncommon for an iron deficiency to present alongside uncomfortable gut symptoms like gas and bloating, constipation, diarrhea, and abdominal pain.
What are the symptoms of iron-deficiency anemia? People with mild or moderate iron-deficiency anemia may not have any symptoms. More serious iron-deficiency anemia may cause common symptoms of anemia, such as tiredness, shortness of breath, or chest pain.
Acute low back pain is most often caused by a sudden injury to the muscles and ligaments supporting the back. The pain may be caused by muscle spasms or a strain or tear in the muscles and ligaments. Causes of sudden low back pain include: Compression fractures to the spine from osteoporosis.
If the pain lasts four weeks or longer. If the pain keeps getting worse as time goes by. If you are experiencing other symptoms, such as fever, major weight loss or weight gain, loss of function or weakness in extremities, bladder problems, etc.
Age. Back pain is more common with age, starting around age 30 or 40. Lack of exercise. Weak, unused muscles in the back and abdomen might lead to back pain.
Multiple myeloma can cause pain in affected bones – usually the back, ribs or hips. The pain is frequently a persistent dull ache, which may be made worse by movement.
Left untreated, however, iron-deficiency anemia can make you feel tired and weak. You may notice pale skin and cold hands and feet. Iron-deficiency anemia can also cause you to feel dizzy or lightheaded. Occasionally, it can cause chest pain, a fast heartbeat and shortness of breath.
Conclusions: Although Iron and vitamin D deficiency cannot be isolated as the sole risk factors of chronic neck pain, they should be considered as two modifiable risk. The high prevalence of chronic neck pain, hypovitaminosis D and low ferritin amongst women is of concern.
In addition to nerve-related pain, low iron also causes muscles to fatigue easier due to a lack of sustained oxygenation of muscle (the myoglobulin protein that holds oxygen in muscle is iron dependent), in turn causing muscle pain4. Iron-rich hemoglobin carries oxygen to body tissues that need to repair.
Some common disorders which can mimic chronic low back pain include sciatica, facet arthropathy, osteoporotic compression fractures, infection, tumor, trauma, and inflammatory diseases.
“Red flag” and “yellow flag” signs
Red flags are possible indicators of serious spinal pathology: Thoracic pain. Fever and unexplained weight loss. Bladder or bowel dysfunction.
Lower back pain is very common. It can result from a strain (injury) to muscles or tendons in the back. Other causes include arthritis, structural problems and disk injuries. Pain often gets better with rest, physical therapy and medication.
Two common issues that can lead to lower back pain are kidney stones and kidney infection. Kidney stones can lead to lower back pain on either side or both sides, between your hips and ribs in the back of your abdomen. This is referred to as flank pain.
Some symptoms (often called "red flag" symptoms) may suggest that the back pain has a more serious cause. These include fever, recent trauma, weight loss, a history of cancer and neurological symptoms, such as numbness, weakness or incontinence (involuntary loss of urine or stool).
If left untreated, iron-deficiency anemia can cause serious health problems. Having too little oxygen in the body can damage organs. With anemia, the heart must work harder to make up for the lack of red blood cells or hemoglobin. This extra work can harm the heart.
The most common symptoms include: tiredness and lack of energy (lethargy) shortness of breath. noticeable heartbeats (heart palpitations)
As the anemia gets worse, symptoms may include: Brittle nails. Blue color to the whites of the eye. Desire to eat ice or other non-food things (pica)
You may also find that low iron causes weight gain. There are a couple of reasons for this; firstly, your energy levels are low and so your exercise levels reduce; secondly, iron is essential for thyroid function, and an underactive thyroid will lead to weight gain.