If iron supplements don't increase your blood-iron levels, it's likely the anemia is due to a source of bleeding or an iron-absorption problem that your doctor will need to investigate and treat.
Malabsorption is when your body can't absorb iron from food, and is another possible cause of iron deficiency anaemia. This may happen if you have coeliac disease, a common digestive condition where a person has an adverse reaction to gluten, or surgery to remove all or part of your stomach (gastrectomy).
Your doctor may recommend a blood test after 2 to 4 weeks to see if it's working. If you feel tired, but have not been diagnosed with iron deficiency anaemia, it's important to talk to a doctor or pharmacist before taking ferrous fumarate. This is because there may be other reasons why you lack energy.
It often takes three to six months to restore your iron levels.
Severe iron-deficiency anemia may require a blood transfusion, iron injections, or intravenous (IV) iron therapy. Treatment may need to be done in a hospital.
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.
Anaemia is defined as a haemoglobin (Hb) level two standard deviations below the normal for age and sex: In men aged over 15 years — Hb below 130 g/L. In non-pregnant women aged over 15 years — Hb below 120 g/L. In children aged 12–14 years — Hb below 120 g/L.
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.
Blood loss causes you to lose iron in a dose-dependent manner. In other words, the more you bleed, the more iron you can lose. Menstruation; blood donation; internal or external injuries; parasitic infections; or any disorder that results in chronic blood loss can lead to iron depletion.
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)
Lack of improvement most commonly is due to poor adherence with therapy, but alternative causes including malabsorption or ongoing bleeding should also be considered. It is important to assess for side effects of iron therapy, such as constipation, that may impede adherence.
Inhibitors of iron absorption include phytate, which is a compound found in plant-based diets that demonstrate a dose-dependent effect on iron absorption. Polyphenols are found in black and herbal tea, coffee, wine, legumes, cereals, fruit, and vegetables and have been demonstrated to inhibit iron absorption.
Common causes of iron deficiency include not getting enough iron in your diet, chronic blood loss, pregnancy and vigorous exercise. Some people become iron deficient if they are unable to absorb iron. Iron deficiency can be treated by adding iron-rich foods to the diet.
Having an iron-deficiency may not cause insomnia or sleep problems but it can make you feel exhausted and overtired, which in turn may hinder your efforts to fall asleep in the first place!
Yes. Low iron causes low energy, which may result in burning fewer calories and causing you to keep reducing your caloric intake to lose weight.
Fatigue. Tiring easily, and waking up tired even after a good night's sleep, are common and potentially serious symptoms of anemia. This is due to reduced and compromised red blood cells that naturally cannot carry the required levels of oxygen to the organs – which, in turn, cannot function efficiently.
Eye symptoms of low iron can include a pale coloring of the inside of the lower eyelids. In moderate or severe cases of iron deficiency anemia, the inside layer of the lower eyelid is very pale pink or yellow instead of red. Rather than low iron, one common cause of blurry vision is dry eye.
If iron deficiency anaemia is not treated
can make you more at risk of illness and infection – a lack of iron affects the immune system. may increase your risk of developing complications that affect the heart or lungs – such as an abnormally fast heartbeat (tachycardia) or heart failure.
During stage 5, iron deficiency affects tissues, resulting in symptoms and signs. Diagnosis of iron deficiency anemia prompts consideration of its cause, usually bleeding. Patients with obvious blood loss (eg, women with menorrhagia) may require no further testing.
Living with anemia
Following treatment, most people go on to live normal, healthy lives. However, anemia can have lasting, or life-threatening, effects. These are more common if the condition is chronic, severe, or left untreated.
A large 2020 study in BMC Psychiatry found that people with iron deficiency anemia had a significantly higher incidence and risk of anxiety disorders, depression, sleep disorder, and psychotic disorders.