Low iron and iron saturation

[Mfurches]

Just got some labs back . Iron is at the bottom of the range and iron saturation is below range. Does test cause low iron typically ? I just started an iron supplement . How long should it take to bring my levels up?

 

[ajax31]

Testosterone increases erythropoiesis (red blood cell formation), which in turn draws on body iron stores (ferritin). This places men on TRT in a difficult position when their hematocrit rises and donating blood to reduce it further depletes more iron.

I haven’t had to deal with this problem, but they say if your hematocrit is too high, lower the test dose and inject more frequently. Or go the blood donation route and risk developing an iron deficiency.

Testosterone also increases the absorption of dietary iron as well as release of recycled iron stored in macrophages in the liver and spleen due to its suppressive effect on hepcidin (and resulting increased levels of the ferroprtin transporter).

Iron metabolism is very complex and tricky.

 

[HealthMan]

Just got some labs back . Iron is at the bottom of the range and iron saturation is below range. Does test cause low iron typically ? I just started an iron supplement . How long should it take to bring my levels up?

Usually testosterone increases iron. Your levels are a bit low but with iron supplementation your levels should look good soon. I wouldn’t worry at all.

 

[rustylwb]

My Liver team had me take 3x65//325mg when I was pretty low from Liver cancer. It worked by the next test at 90 days but I think it would have been ok in 45 days. 3 daily

 

[Systemlord]

I started TRT with a saturation levels of 14 with 20 being at the bottom of the ranges, iron was also low normal.

I never felt right on TRT until I got saturation into the top half of the ranges after stopping TRT without any iron supplementation, then went back on and became iron deficient again.

I have no choice but to supplement iron on TRT.

 

[maliksab]

I started TRT with a saturation levels of 14 with 20 being at the bottom of the ranges, iron was also low normal.

I never felt right on TRT until I got saturation into the top half of the ranges after stopping TRT without any iron supplementation, then went back on and became iron deficient again.

I have no choice but to supplement iron on TRT.

What kind of iron supplement are you taking ? And whats your dose?

 

[Mfurches]

I just started taking a ferrous sulfate supplement 65 mg 2x a day. I’m not sure how quickly it will affect my ranges .

 

[Systemlord]

What kind of iron supplement are you taking ?

Vitamin Shoppe brand, the easily absorbed gentle iron. It's iron chelated.

The ferrous sulfate is the least easily absorbed type of iron. I didn't absorb it very well. Also the ferrous sulfate has the most side effects when compared to iron chelate.

And whats your dose?

I take 112mg daily, anytime I attempt to decrease even a little I encounter symptoms later in the day.

 

[Marni Moon]

in addition to taking iron, you still need to select and take assimilation cofactors (vitamin C, vitamin B12, vitamin D, vitamin B, iodine, selenium, copper, zinc), there are more than 10 positions of them
I found the whole author's schemes for the reception of all these cofactors, but now, unfortunately, I cannot find
... tablets have every cofactor you need

 

[Mfurches]

Just got more labs back . After a few weeks of supplementing iron my iron level went from 39 to 124( ref range 38-169) but my ferritin actually went down! Last time it was 79 and this time it was 44. ( ref range 30-400) how could ferritin go down while iron goes up??

 

[Match]

Testosterone increases Erythropoiesis, which attracts ferritin iron, which then decreases. I think i should add iron, but at the limits where the Hematocrit doesn't increase much. What's your hematocrit?

 

[Nelson Vergel]

Just got some labs back . Iron is at the bottom of the range and iron saturation is below range. Does test cause low iron typically ? I just started an iron supplement . How long should it take to bring my levels up?

You will benefit from this thread

Iron Deficiency Without Anemia – Common, Important, Neglected - Excel Male TRT Forum

Iron Deficiency Without Anemia – Common, Important, Neglected (2019) Esa Soppi* Department of internal medicine, Eira Hospital, Laivurinkatu 29, FI-00150 Helsinki, Finland Abstract A serum ferritin concentration of <30 µg/L is the most sensitive and specific test for the identification...

www.excelmale.com

 

[FDV70]

For those interested, I use hepcidin in a protocol to rapidly raise ferritin. I have a growing number of guys trying it and recovering ferritin after donating, but because there is SO MUCH BAD INFORMATION out there, I am having trouble propagating the word.

Iron Supplementation Protocol to Raise Ferritin FAST While on TRT - Excel Male TRT Forum

Hi all, I started TRT in 2001 and have been giving blood over the years and have always had issues with recovering my ferritin. Long story short, I got tired of waiting for others to do the research, so I did it myself, created a protocol, hired a hematologist in May 2021 who thought it could...

www.excelmale.com

 

[Nelson Vergel]

@FDV70

Very interesting approach. Thanks for sharing it.

"60/60/60: The Vorck Ferritin Protocol
Good for a ~20 point boost in ferritin:
Take iron 60mg at 9am, 60mg again at 3pm, 60mg a third time at 8pm, three days.

Good for a ~30 point boost in ferritin:
Take iron 60mg at 9am, 60mg again at 3pm, 60mg a third time at 8pm, four days. (Four days has proven to be the most popular option).

Etc. The study team has come to a consensus that after two days, you're going to see 8 to 10 points of ferritin per day with minimal rise in hemoglobin.

If you want to be a guinea pig, try 5 days and let me know. No one has gone beyond that as far as I know. My hematologist wanted me to do this for a week.

Since we are increasing ferritin and iron between donations, we can't forget the whole point we do this protocol -- avoiding elevated hemoglogin. What would this do to your HGB if you screwed up and took too little or took everything at the wring times? Let's look at a hypothetical and ridiculously high dose. "Theoretically, 500mg of absorbed iron should produce 500ml of packed cells, the amount in about 2 units of blood, or enough to raise the hemoglobin by about 2 g/dL." [Source]

IV iron infusion will work too [source] but no doctor would ever sign off on it for someone on TRT with erythrocytosis."

I invite guys to read this and comment: High Hemoglobin or Hematocrit While on TRT

 

[JimGainz]

I need to do this. My latest labs shows a ferritin score of 11 (range 38-380) with hemoglobin of 15.8 and HCT 48.8. This is exactly one month after donating blood. I also only take .46 mg of Testosterone every 3 days. I need to get iron up w/o spiking HCT.