I had just had the results of my lab work and was told My Ferritin level drooped from 13 to 12. Now my doctor wants a stool culture and wants me to take Iron for 30 days to get this level back up. Should I be concerned?
Hiyah
Try not to be concerned but just follow the (good) advice your doctor has given you. Ferratin level should be between 12-150 ng/mL for females. Your doctor should give you anothr check up blood test after a while. If ferratin low again then may want to discuss with doctor the possible cause(s) of low iron.
You could also consider changing your diet to more broccoli, spinach, molasses, etc (though the effect is cumulative and probably minimal).
I've recently recovered from severe aneamia - my ferritin levels were 1.1 and then a year later too low for the hospital to test. About 4 mths after a blood transfusion and operation to sort out the cause of the aneamia my ferratin levels were still a bit low and so am now on 1 iron tablet a day for a month.
sheila why don't you take the easy and natural way to heighten your iron content and eat brussels sprouts and other foods high in iron. THEN go back for another test. Don't say what you have taken, but if it is normal reading, then suggest to your doctor that instead of spending so much money on tests, he tell his patients what to eat!
Don't be too concerned...but be grateful that your Doc wants to cover all angles. I am sure it will all just be a case of you not getting enough iron into your system - which isn;t easy with diet at the best of times (unless you like eating raw liver! ). I take a daily multi vitamin tablet that has added iron, as I have had trouble all my life with iron levels dipping. Let us know how it goes. x
Low ferratin levels mean the same thing as low levels of iron. This is being discussed already under ANAEMIA. Take a look and eat brussels sprouts...