Recovering from anemia - how long?

gmallan
gmallan Posts: 2,099 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hi, I had a blood test a couple weeks ago and which showed that I have very low iron levels, not a surprise since I don't eat red meat. I had symptoms such as tiredness, diziness when standing up too quickly and bruising easily. I'm now on a good slow-release iron supplement that I take twice daily with vitimin c tablets.

I guess I'm just looking for some anecdotal evidence of anyone who's been in a similar situation. How long did it take you to recover/start feeling better?

Also, I'm still managing to train fairly intensely even with the tiredness. My other question is since anemia affects the body's ability to carry oxygen around the body, did you notice a marked increase in training ability when the defficiency was corrected?

Cheers :smile:

Replies

  • rainbowbow
    rainbowbow Posts: 7,490 Member
    About 6 weeks. Constipation I noticed right away LOL


    Not necessarily an increase in training but definitely in overall energy.
  • SammyKatt13
    SammyKatt13 Posts: 124 Member
    I couldn't take the iron pills. Made me SUPER sick for hours even after eating. I just have to make sure I eat lots of food with iron in them. But it took about a month to feel back to normal.
  • gmallan
    gmallan Posts: 2,099 Member
    Just found this article about iron defficiency and performance. Interestingly restoring iron stores to a normal level does seem to produce an increase in cardio performance. Well that's something to look forward to :smile:

    http://www.ohio.edu/people/hoffmar1/iron and Performance.pdf
  • hdlb
    hdlb Posts: 333 Member
    Hi, I had a blood test a couple weeks ago and which showed that I have very low iron levels, not a surprise since I don't eat red meat. I had symptoms such as tiredness, diziness when standing up too quickly and bruising easily. I'm now on a good slow-release iron supplement that I take twice daily with vitimin c tablets.

    I guess I'm just looking for some anecdotal evidence of anyone who's been in a similar situation. How long did it take you to recover/start feeling better?

    Also, I'm still managing to train fairly intensely even with the tiredness. My other question is since anemia affects the body's ability to carry oxygen around the body, did you notice a marked increase in training ability when the defficiency was corrected?

    Cheers :smile:


    My answer is going to suck, becuase its been over 11 years....but the cause of the anemia was finally discovered 6 months ago, and things have improved since then, though I still can't seem to keep stable levels. I have no idea how long it should take to recover. I don't have much to compare when it come to training, except that I tried to do C25K last summer and had to stop because I coudln't catch my breath, and I'm doing it agian now with no issues at all.
  • kimleroy
    kimleroy Posts: 50 Member
    Hi, I had iron-deficiency anemia about two years ago. Once I started taking iron supplements regularly it was probably a month or two, although to be honest I wasn't very good about taking the pills regularly. I still don't eat very much red meat at all but I try to make sure I'm getting it from other dietary sources like fortified cereals, lentils, beans, spinach, as well as chicken and fish. You can add iron as one of the things being tracked in your diary (in addition to fat, protein, carbs, etc) to see how you do on a day to day basis. I found that really helpful.
  • SammyKatt13
    SammyKatt13 Posts: 124 Member
    One side note: I still dont eat any red meat and my iron is fine now. When I had it checked last year my doctor said it was scary low and I needed to come back asap and to get tested every week. I got tested again 2 weeks later and it was already improving just by adding the right food into my diet.

    Now i can always tell when I havent had enough iron since I tend to get tired very easy when its low. And now that i keep track of everything i eat on here it makes it very easy to tell when i'm not getting enough.

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