Ugh Iron

So after my 3 month check up my feritin was too low so have started taking iron. After spending the first 3 months dealing with constipation and finally getting things balance out with daily Restor-a-lax and probiotic, I'm now having issues with being kind of loose and going all the time, guess not everyone finds iron constipating. My Mom advised me she has the same issue.

Trying to figure out how to deal with this, I'm afraid to stop the Restor-a-lax but not sure if adding Benefibre might help? I'm taking so much stuff now it's really frustrating.

Any suggestions/help appreciated.

If I were you, I would try to reduce the restolax by a tsp at a time. Do it for a week. If the runs continue, the following week reduce by another tsp.

As someone who deals with constipation- I rather have mild runs than getting backed- up.

Adding benefiber - that may help but fiber may bind to iron and prevent it from being absorbed.

What type of iron are you taking? Ferrous sulfate? Iron carbonyl? Some people have better luck with stomach troubles by switching to a different formulation. I would suggest trying a different type of iron pill and seeing if that helps.

I had horrible constipation from the ferrous gluconate, so I switched to ferrous fumarate. Waiting for my first set of labs to come in so I'll know where I stand. I do a stool softener (Costco generic Colace) am & pm to prevent constipation. I never found that fiber did much for me, but everyone is different. Good Luck!

Ask your Dr for this Iron pill as a prescription... it comes in generic now, name is FOLTRIN, it has everything needed to absorb iron. and no calcium to block absorbtion. Taking this pill with intrinsic factor will enable absorbtion of iron from other foods as well.

I always took mine with a light meal/snack. I took it for about 6 months 2x a day..., much depends on how low your iron is... then I reduced to once daily.

How you tolerate Iron totally depends on your body. I took immodium to slow gastric motility.., there are some herbs that are also effective and regulating. Among those is sweet Everlasting. ..used as a tea... very restorative to enzymes.

I take Ferrous Gluconate Tablets (324mg) daily mid-morning. TIP: I take it with a chewable vitamin C tablet to help with absorption and my iron readings were dialed for going on my 3rd set of labs. There are some that say vitamin C doesn't really help but I have consulted with several nutritionists and read several articles that lead me to do the combo daily about 1-2 hours after my first dose of calcium supplement.

I've started with the ferrous fumarate which the clinic recommended been taking at bedtime with my Vitamin C as it's the only time of day I'm not taking Calcium or Rabeprazole. They'll test again in August ahead of my September 6 month follow up, so we can evaluate if this type of Iron is helping.

Definitely something I want to stay on top of as I've had Anemia with really low hemoglobin, and it's definitely something to be avoided, didn't think it would be a problem as I'm post menopausal, but I guess there's a certain amount of trial and error in finding out how your new system works.

I'll try reducing the Restoralax and I added a tsp of benefibre this morning.

Thanks for all the input.

I am post menopausal since 6 months post op. in my 10 years post op - I had 4 series of iron infusions.

They don't know why I am losing so much iron-blood.

I'm post menopausal too which is why they figured I'd get enough Iron from the pre-natal vitamins I've been taking, I'll just have to keep on top of it, as I've battled anemia a number of times as an adult, and it sucks.

Hi ,

I am taking Integra F. Prescription from my bariatric surgeon. It has 125 Mg which is 684% more than a normal person. So far so good. My labs are normal but I did have an iron infusion in December 2017