It happens all too often; I return to the house for the third time to retrieve yet another thing that I have forgotten for my 3 year old or one year old’s outing. The truth is, that this brain fog, these moments of forgetting what you are doing or saying, are common to most people with iron deficiency. What’s more is that a third of all women will be iron deficient in their lifetime. That’s one in three women.
Iron deficiency is a silent illness that contributes to a long list of symptoms including but not limited to :
- Fatigue
- Brain fog
- Hair loss
- Anxiety
- Shortness of breath,
- Heart palpitations,
- Muscle aches,
- Cold intolerance and
- Depression
Iron tablets cause terrible side effects to three quarters of those that take them. The constipation, stomach cramps and nausea make most stop taking them within the first month of their prescription. Those that do manage to stomach them for longer, on average, need almost eight months of compliance before any improvement in symptoms is achieved.
Who is at risk of iron deficiency?
In short almost anyone but particularly women who are suffering:
- Heavy menstrual bleeding
- Pregnancy (haemodilution, doubling of blood vol)
- Post partum – either due to PV loss and even during LSCS
- Inflammatory Bowel disorder patients (male and female)
- Gut absorption problems eg coeliac disease
- Post bariatric surgery
- Vegans and even vegetarians
As a mum, I am reaching out to other mums knowing how tough it can be to live your best life while juggling the demands of work, family, home, physical and emotional well being. I have spoken to so many women who have felt less than their normal, only to be turned away by their GP’s, convinced that their symptoms are due to ineffective management of these demands.
It is NOT normal to feel these symptoms and something can be done to get you back to your normal.
An iron infusion can be offered to any patient that has blood results confirming their iron deficiency and symptoms that compliment the severity of the deficiency. After careful analysis of recent blood tests, a total dose iron infusion given over thirty minutes can have the same effect as taking a year’s worth of iron. The effects are felt as soon as a week after the infusion.
If you have heavy menstrual bleeding, a meat restricted diet or have had a haemorrhage at delivery then you are at risk of developing iron deficiency. Even if you are a mum of two or more children in quick succession. Don’t put these symptoms down to the busyness of life.
Go and get your iron studies done and give yourself that chance to be living your best life.
The GP’s at Chelsea Pharmacy Medical Clinic have been trained to understand the impact of Iron and how to recognise deficiency and how to treat it with an Iron infusion under the expert supervision of The Iron Clinic.