iron intake help!

so my dr suggests 900mg of ferrous gluonate

Ferrous gloconate is iron salts. It causes a lot of stomach distress in a lot of people and does not absorb as well as other types of iron, even for normies. *I* take bifera which is a heme iron and polysacchride iron combonation or *I* take Proferrin, which is 100% heme iron. Other people do well on carbonyl iron.

Can you get those at Walmart? 

I brought my iron markers up on 300 mg of Vitalady's Tender iron (carbonyl) and Proferrin ES. She carries both. I would take the Tender iron in the late afternoons away from everything else and the 2 Proferrin tablets split into pieces at bedtime. It took about a year but I have awesome iron labs now. My dietitian has reduced me to taking half of doses I was and we're watching to make sure I can hold my numbers. Good luck!

--gina

If your iron levels are already low, I would go right to a hematologist.

Buy one bottle of carbonyl iron and one bottle of proferrin from Vitalady. Have your hema do a blood iron absorption test. They test your iron in your blood, you take your iron pill (I took two pills as one dose), they do a draw at one, two and three hours to check the iron levels in your blood. Each type of iron has a maximum absorption time which you can find in the product insert.

Repeat the test another day with the second type of iron.

I had been taking carbonyl iron which did not work for me. My hema told me not to waste my money and take anything until we knew I could absorb it. I now rely on infusions, as my blood results showed no increase in my iron levels with both tests.

I think a huge difference in how successful we are with iron supplements, is directly related to whether one still has periods or not. I was having regular periods and found myself needing infusions six months apart. I had a uterine ablation last May, and at six months, my ferritin and iron levels were great! Just had my labs done again yesterday, but I feel like my iron is ok.

Thus, if you are still having periods, keeping your iron levels up may be an uphill battle. Best consult a hematologist for help.

I was able to get Proferin Forte (includes folic acid) as a prescription.  I think because it had folic acid it was covered.  It was much cheaper than buying the regular Proferin OTC.  I was taking that and carbonyl iron and my levels still plummeted.  I was unable to get an iron infusion until they were in the anemia range.  I had been showing them trending downward but it didn't matter.  Push for infusions if your iron/PTH levels start trending down even on supplements.  Its sooooo nice not to have to take iron and space it apart from everything else.  Now I can take more calcium batches instead. 

Tablets also did not help me get my iron up. I have had to have 3 sets of iron infusions to help me and that was the best thing to do. The kind I had was called Feraheme and it only took 1 1/2 hours to infuse and it was so easy and no pain. Trying to get another set now to keep my iron up for my total knee joint replacement surgery on 02/24. Last year had a set and my primary doc ordered it, did not need to go to a hematoloist.