Iron Overload
The world breaks everyone, and afterward, some are strong at the broken places - Ernest Hemingway
image by: Haemochromatosis UK
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A Host of Ills When Iron’s Out of Balance
Iron, an essential nutrient, has long been the nation’s most common nutritional deficiency. In decades past, many parents worried that children who were picky eaters would develop iron-deficiency anemia. My mother boiled meat I refused to eat and fed me the concentrated broth in hopes I’d get some of its iron.
Now baby foods, infant formula and many other child-friendly foods, like breakfast cereals, breads, rice and pasta, are fortified with iron. Today iron deficiency is more likely in infants who are exclusively breast-fed, young children who consume too much milk, menstruating and pregnant women, vegans and strict vegetarians, and people who take medications that cause internal…
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Iron Overload
Traditionally, iron toxicity was considered mainly a hereditary condition. However, recent articles in the New England Journal of Medicine and elsewhere indicate that a person may have iron overload without having either the hemochomatosis gene or other obvious reasons for the problem such as multiple blood transfusions or other obvious exposure.
Iron overload disorder: All you need to know
Blood tests - two blood tests can detect iron overload, even before symptoms appear. Serum transferring saturation - transferrin is a protein that carries iron in the blood. This test measures the amount of iron bound to transferrin. Saturation values over 45% are excessively high. Serum ferritin - this blood test measures the amount of iron the body has stored. If serum transferrin levels are too high the doctor will measure serum ferritin levels. In order to diagnose hemochromatosis both tests are needed - sometimes they need to be repeated for better accuracy. This is because several other diseases and conditions can raise ferritin levels.
Iron: The Double-Edged Mineral
Iron stores are known to rise with age, and for many years were considered harmless. But a landmark study in Finland published in the early 90s in the journal Circulation suggested that excessive iron stores in men rank right behind smoking as the most prevalent risk factor for cardiovascular disease. While more recent studies have found this theory to be inconclusive, the jury is still out.
New strategies for diagnosing iron overload
Recently discovered genetic mutations, modern diagnostic techniques, and fresh approaches to therapy change the outlook on hemochromatosis.
Secondary Iron Overload
Secondary iron overload results from excess absorption of iron, repeated blood transfusions, or excess oral intake, typically in patients with disorders of erythropoiesis. Diagnosis is with serum iron studies. Treatment is usually by iron chelation.
The Iron in Your Blood
The good news if you find out that your iron levels are elevated or you have hemochromatosis is that remedying the condition is relatively simple. Some people advise using iron chelators like phytic acid or IP6, but I tried that with my dad and it failed miserably so I would not recommend it. Donating your blood is a far safer, more effective and inexpensive approach for this problem.
Transfusion-Induced Iron Overload
In some patients, noticeably those with thalassemia major, sickle cell disease, myelodysplastic syndrome, aplastic anemia, hemolytic anemia, and refractory sideroblastic anemias, who may become transfusion-dependent and receive excess iron with each transfusion (that the body has no means to excrete), iron gradually accumulates in various tissues, causing morbidity and mortality. Each unit of transfused blood has approximately 250 mg of iron.
A Host of Ills When Iron’s Out of Balance
These days, more attention is being paid to the opposite problem: iron overload, which studies indicate can damage internal organs and may increase the risk of diabetes, heart attack and cancer, particularly in older people.
Iron Disorders Institute
Iron overload can be inherited (genetic) or acquired by receiving numerous blood transfusions, getting iron shots or injections, or consuming high levels of supplemental iron. Some of the genetic disorders that result in iron overload include are hereditary hemochromatosis (all types), African iron overload, sickle cell disease, thalassemia, X-linked sideroblastic anemia, enzyme deficiencies (pyruvate kinase; glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase) and very rare protein transport disorders aceruloplasminemia and atransferrinemia.
Patient
Usually there are no symptoms until organ damage (possibly irreversible) has occurred. Therefore, awareness and monitoring of those at risk are important.
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