ferritin

I had my doctor check my ferritin levels at my routine physical last week. I tried to give platelets twice, and was turned away for low hematocrit of 35 (normal 36-44, so not that low, but low), so I decided to have some checking done on my iron levels. Turns out my ferritin is low at 20. My doctor says that less than 35 is low, even though the reference value starts at 10. He recommended iron supplements, which I have been taking for a couple weeks already. He said continuing to take those for a few weeks more should do the trick.

Another lab value, the TIBC, or Total Iron Binding Capacity, was high at 454 (normal 250-450). This value indicates that my body is desperately trying to scrounge for every available bit of iron, and confirms that low iron is a problem for me.

My serum iron should be low, but it was actually on the high end of the scale at 164 (normal 40-175). The doctor thinks this can be explained by the iron supplements I've been taking raising my serum iron, but it hasn't been long enough for the ferritin to increase yet.

Why is all this important? Well, low iron = lower amount of hemoglobin = less oxygen getting carried to muscles. Obviously that's not good for someone who fancies herself an endurance athlete. So, I'll continue taking the iron supplements, as well as vitamin C (aids in absorption). The low ferritin levels might explain in part my poor recovery from my layoff last winter, and why I've felt pretty sluggish in most of my races this year. The level was drawn a few weeks after I'd started taking the iron supplements, so I wonder how low it was before that? Scary! At least I know that I can improve this, and in a way, this is good news as it's an explanation for why I've been feeling a bit off.

In other health news, my thyroid (TSH) was normal, and my vitamin D was low. The doctor recommended taking some vitamin D supplements, too. Vitamin D is important in osteoporosis prevention, and since there is quite a bit of family history of osteoporosis, I definitely want to avoid that.

Finally, my pap smear was normal too :). That means 3 more years before I have to have another one. Yay! However, seeing as how I am now 40, the doc said I have to get a mammogram. Oh well...beats the alternative I guess.