Guest guest Posted June 17, 2003 Report Share Posted June 17, 2003 A little while back I posted about my 15 month old daughter needing iron supplements, and the frustration of the nurse at the practice saying " you're giving her meat right. " Well her iron had been retested and came back low-normal, and on her last appt. 2 weeks ago it was low again and they want me to increase her iron supplements. I am giving her lots of iron rich foods, nutritional yeast, blackstrap mollases, apricots, etc, but am feeling a bit concerned that even after 3 months on iron supplements, PLUS all the wholesome food, the levels are low. Anyone have any suggestions? Thanks,Karyn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 17, 2003 Report Share Posted June 17, 2003 My experiences have never failed to teach me to trust my own inner voice over any doctor or nurse's speculation. You know your child - is your child showing symptoms of a person with low iron? Does your child bruise more easily than other children? Does she seem to have less energy? I rarely bring my son to a western doctor, for the simple reason that I find the majority to be very uneducated when it comes to nutrition. Many of them don't seem to know much beyond what I learned in the eighth grade (the basic four food groups, etc.). Remember that your child's iron levels are being compared to what is considered " normal " for an American child, most of whom eat meat. In years to come, will they make a sudden discovery that children don't need as much iron as they once thought? It's possible. Many of these " new revelations " that are becoming more acceptable in our society today are little more than common sense. Things that many " alternative parents " have known for years, that people in the East have known for thousands of years. Trust your intuition, mother. You know what is best for your baby. Good Luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 18, 2003 Report Share Posted June 18, 2003 Perhaps absorption is the problem? Vitamin C aids iron absorption. Citrus fruit, leafy vegetables, tomatoes, and strawberries are good sources of vitamin C. See http://www.vrg.org/journal/iron.htm Bonnie - " Karyn " <karyn Monday, June 16, 2003 8:01 PM iron issues <after 3 months on iron supplements, PLUS all the wholesome food, the levels are low. Anyone have any suggestions? Thanks,Karyn> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 18, 2003 Report Share Posted June 18, 2003 , " Karyn " <karyn@3...> wrote: > A little while back I posted about my 15 month old daughter needing iron > supplements, and the frustration of the nurse at the practice saying " you're > giving her meat right. " Well her iron had been retested and came back > low-normal, and on her last appt. 2 weeks ago it was low again and they want > me to increase her iron supplements. I am giving her lots of iron rich > foods, nutritional yeast, blackstrap mollases, apricots, etc, but am feeling > a bit concerned that even after 3 months on iron supplements, PLUS all the > wholesome food, the levels are low. Anyone have any suggestions? > Thanks,Karyn Have they done any tests to find out *why* her iron is low? In particular, have they looked for intestinal bleeding or anything of that sort? Scary thought, of course, but all that iron has to be going somewhere ... Good luck!! Be well, Hadass in Winnnipeg, not an M.D., nor do I play one on any medium. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 18, 2003 Report Share Posted June 18, 2003 > " Karyn " <karyn > iron issues > > A little while back I posted about my 15 month old daughter needing iron > supplements, and the frustration of the nurse at the practice saying " you're > giving her meat right. " Well her iron had been retested and came back > low-normal, and on her last appt. 2 weeks ago it was low again and they want > me to increase her iron supplements. I am giving her lots of iron rich > foods, nutritional yeast, blackstrap mollases, apricots, etc, but am feeling > a bit concerned that even after 3 months on iron supplements, PLUS all the > wholesome food, the levels are low. Anyone have any suggestions? Stop worrying? Stop taking her to the doctor? Stop agreeing to the hemoglobin test? Insist on the full bloodwork rather than the finger prick? Any of these should help... I don't mean to make light of your situation Karyn, and in fact I suggest these in all earnestness. There are some who think that the hemoglobin levels are set high to catch people on the low end, and get them to take iron " just in case " or because if the pharmacueticals thrive, so do doctors. The finger prick is less accurate than blood drawn and tested. There are some babies who utilize iron so well that there will always be low amounts; there are others who utilize it so poorly there will be low amounts (and she'd show signs of anemia). How much are you willing to go through (put dd through) at this age, to figure it out? Me, I gave up. When my son was 15 mos, also, they took a finger prick. They said, " If you don't hear from us, then there's no problem. " I didn't hear from them. So, intending to lord it over the pediatrician who was " worried " about vegetarian patients, I called for the results. They were " low-normal " and the nurse I spoke to " prescribed " iron supplements. So, basically, only because I picked up the phone and called, my son needed iron? I gave him the iron rich foods and cooked in an iron skillet, and beyond that, gave it no more concern than I gave protein, vitamin b12, vitamin D, calcium, etc. That is, I had faith that a healthy, well-balanced diet would meet his needs. I was low-normal iron during pregnancy. I eat a typical amount of iron in foods and in supplements. I feel healthy and so does my son. Now, doing alternative medicine, we have both muscle-tested just fine for iron (that is, the muscle tests showed no indication of an iron deficiency). Just thought I'd share some thoughts.... ~Doh PS. I do recommend that you don't go crazy on yeast (nutritional or oterwise) or you could be setting dd up for a systemic candida overgrowth. --------- " There is *never* a good reason not to be as loving as you can possibly be. " ~Rob Brezny Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 18, 2003 Report Share Posted June 18, 2003 What is that? And how much yeast intake would be cause for concern in getting it? > PS. I do recommend that you don't go crazy on yeast (nutritional or > oterwise) or you could be setting dd up for a systemic candida overgrowth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 20, 2003 Report Share Posted June 20, 2003 I have been through iron issues with my toddler too. When she was 16 months she was tested for iron, amongst other things, as she hadn't been growing. Her iron was at the very bottom end of normal. I started giving her an appetite tonic, which included iron. She was tested again 2 months later, and her iron was a few points lower! The paediatritian prescribed a specific strong iron tonic. Unlike the usual side effect (constipation), this gave her a runny burning poo in every nappy. He thought this most unusual, but could be a reaction to some other ingredient in the products, possibly the synthetic sweeteners. His next suggestion contained the same amount of iron as the appetite tonic (5mg per 5ml). I am still using the appetite tonic - she is now 22 months. However, I will not have her tested again, it is too traumatic. She has not ever showed any signs of low iron. She has good colour and has always been a ball of energy. I have only continued the tonic as a safeguard because she refuses to eat any iron rich foods any more - no more lentils, silver beet, or kidney beans! I also had a consultation with a veg dietitian back then when I was in panic mode, who said that my daughter must have been anemic because I breastfed her fully for 10 months. That old tale about iron stores disappearing after 4-6 months! I found this very insulting as my daughter has never been anemic! Her other advice, and you can take this with a grain of salt if you like, was that dried fruit is not rich in iron, and in fact is only a little better than lollies. I ignored this piece of advice as at that point of time my dd ate very little, and I figured that some raisins and dried apricots were better than nothing at all. I agree with 'Freedom'. If I had listened to myself and my own instincts, instead of allowing myself to be panicked by the doctor and dietitian, I would have had a stress-free couple of months. My daughter decided to grow again of her own accord, and all my panicking didn't make one iota of difference. She will always be small, as are her parents, but she is steadily catching up and might even make the 3rd percentile line one day! There are heaps of children with " low iron " which makes me think it must be fairly normal. Meat eating children rarely get checked out at all as the docs like to pick on the vegetarians - so who knows what their levels are - low iron isn't the domain of vegetarians afterall! Karen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 23, 2003 Report Share Posted June 23, 2003 re: my daughter who has " low iron " according to the doctor. I really appreciate everyone's words. It made me think. For instance, why do I get her blood taken, she shows no signs of anemia, lots of energy, not pale (actually has great skin tone) and if I hadn't brought up the iron supplements, the MD may have forgotten about it. I think for now I will continue doing what I am doing, but don't want her to keep getting blood taken. Mainly I am curious about the reason why it is low. Anyone know how they test for cause of low iron? or should I pursue it? Thanks, Karyn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 24, 2003 Report Share Posted June 24, 2003 > " Karyn " <karyn > Re: iron issues > > Mainly I am curious about the reason why it is low. Anyone know how > they test for cause of low iron? or should I pursue it? Thanks, Karyn Who knows why it is low - who knows if it is in fact low, or just lower than some randomly defined level? The test to find the cause would be bloodwork, it would be long and involved and no dr in his/her right mind would go to the effort for a child that's obviously not anemic. I doubt insurance would pay for all the tests. I guess if you *really* want to know, the best ways to pursue it would be to see an orthomolecular medical dr, or to go the alternative route and see someone who does applied kinesiology. (Not invasive and doesn't require blood drawn.) But really, it doesn't matter, because the " cure " is the same - feed her high-iron foods, cook in an iron skillet, and assume she's fine unless you see signs otherwise. Or give her iron supplements. ~Doh -------- " If you're going through Hell, keep going. " ~Winston Churchill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 25, 2003 Report Share Posted June 25, 2003 I really appreciate your knowledge. I'm not going to worry about it.By her behavior, she's doing awesome! Doh! [dohdriver] Monday, June 23, 2003 9:50 PM Re: iron issues > " Karyn " <karyn > Re: iron issues > > Mainly I am curious about the reason why it is low. Anyone know how > they test for cause of low iron? or should I pursue it? Thanks, Karyn Who knows why it is low - who knows if it is in fact low, or just lower than some randomly defined level? The test to find the cause would be bloodwork, it would be long and involved and no dr in his/her right mind would go to the effort for a child that's obviously not anemic. I doubt insurance would pay for all the tests. I guess if you *really* want to know, the best ways to pursue it would be to see an orthomolecular medical dr, or to go the alternative route and see someone who does applied kinesiology. (Not invasive and doesn't require blood drawn.) But really, it doesn't matter, because the " cure " is the same - feed her high-iron foods, cook in an iron skillet, and assume she's fine unless you see signs otherwise. Or give her iron supplements. ~Doh -------- " If you're going through Hell, keep going. " ~Winston Churchill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 26, 2003 Report Share Posted June 26, 2003 > " Karyn " <karyn > RE: Re: iron issues > > I really appreciate your knowledge. I'm not going to worry about it.By her > behavior, she's doing awesome! Glad we were hear to ease your worries! ~Doh -------- " If you're going through Hell, keep going. " ~Winston Churchill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 26, 2003 Report Share Posted June 26, 2003 I wanted to mention that I had been a little concern about David's iron, but I've noticed a significant change since taking him off dairy due to his ear/nose problems. I guess the dairy was affecting his iron absorption because nothing else has changed, and he seems to have more energy. Of course, he's also feeling better now because he doesn't have chronic ear infections. Jan > > Doh! <dohdriver > 2003/06/25 Wed PM 08:55:44 EDT > > Re: iron issues > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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