Suggest Remedy For Low Iron Level In Blood

Posted on Fri, 13 Nov 2015

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Fri, 13 Nov 2015 Answered on

Fri, 4 Dec 2015 Last reviewed on

Question : Hi
my cousin is 16 years old and she had her iron levels tested and her iron is waithin normal range but her ferretin is a bit low. GP said to take some iron supplements and she got some ferrograd but isn't sure how long to take it for. . she said the pharmacist told her a couple months should be OK and then to test again later.. is that OK?

Answered by Dr. Panagiotis Zografakis (22 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
4 months at least

Detailed Answer:
Hello,

a low ferritin means that her iron stores were empty. Supplemental iron requires a couple of months to restore the hematologic disorders and another couple of months to replenish the stores. 4 months should be enough for most cases. Sometimes more is required. Testing after a couple of months would be helpful to determine whether current supplementation is adequate or not.

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Kind Regards!

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar