[barb02]

Just heard back around blood work that I had done yesterday because my hemoglobin count was low in blood work I had done the previous week. I have to start taking iron and vitamin B12 supplements. I hope my tummy can handle it. Maybe this is why I have been so tired. I will be retested in 3 months. I guess I need to eat more spinach. I rarely eat red meat. I need to do some research on what other foods have iron in them.

[Kitt]

There are many.

http://www.redcrossblood.org/learn-a...ron-rich-foods

[EddieF]

Funny I just replied to Fatigue post that B12 & Iron are a great start.
B12 does absolutely nothing to my stomach, Iron supps constipate unless it's "slow fe". Have spinich with the orals. I've tried that combo. Seemed to help strength.

[tkrik]

No wonder you have been so tired.

Just a hint, take your iron supplement with some sort of vitamin C. It will help the iron "bind" to blood cells.

I don't take B12 supplements so I have no suggestion there as to whether or not it will upset your digestive system. I used to take it years ago and never had trouble, but that was before all my digestive issues started.

Spinach is a great superfood! I love it. Since I can no longer eat lettuce, spinach has been a good replacement. I also eat at for dinner, at breakfast in my eggs, or in sandwiches.

Fortified cereals have both iron and B12 as well as other vitamins and minerals in them. Check the labels on them when you go to the store.

Eggs are a good source of both as well. Combine them with spinach and you're doing great.

Hang in there and let us know how you are doing.

[SallyC]

A spinach omelete ...yummmmm!!

[mrsD]

B12 does not typically upset the GI tract. The amount in each tablet is quite minute. It is not even absorbed very well, so you should take it on an empty stomach, and choose the activated form called methylcobalamin or methylB12 for short.

Iron is a different thing altogether. Iron really should be supervised by a doctor. How long to take it, how much, etc. Taking iron when you don't need it, can lead to toxicity as it is stored in organs and over time poisons them. Iron is not well absorbed, and much remains in the GI tract and comes out in the stool. The body does not want to easily absorb it, because it of its potential toxicity. You should have bloods tests done to show when your anemia has improved enough to cut back on it finally.

[Kitt]

Exactly. Too much Iron can be toxic.

[barb02]

Originally Posted by mrsD

B12 does not typically upset the GI tract. The amount in each tablet is quite minute. It is not even absorbed very well, so you should take it on an empty stomach, and choose the activated form called methylcobalamin or methylB12 for short.

Iron is a different thing altogether. Iron really should be supervised by a doctor. How long to take it, how much, etc. Taking iron when you don't need it, can lead to toxicity as it is stored in organs and over time poisons them. Iron is not well absorbed, and much remains in the GI tract and comes out in the stool. The body does not want to easily absorb it, because it of its potential toxicity. You should have bloods tests done to show when your anemia has improved enough to cut back on it finally.

I was told by pcp to take both with food -- at different meals. The directions of the B12 bottle say the same. I am taking 1000 mcg. I am not sure how much iron she prescribed. I am going to pick up the prescription today if the thunderstorms ever let up. I am scheduled to have blood work again in three months.

[mrsD]

Do not take B12 with food.... I don't care who told you otherwise, as they are not well informed.

Drugs in microgram quantities like levothyroxine, and digoxin and other things are not well or absorbed at all in the presence of food. This has been well documented, but not for supplements yet. It could be 50 more years of waiting and failing.

B12 is absorbed two ways. 1) with intrinsic factor which is designed to grab small 1-4mcg amounts of B12 out of protein you eat. If this fails, and intrinsic factor will not be secreted in low acid environments or when damaged by autoimmune attack, the only way B12 can be absorbed is passively in the small intestine instead. Food absorbs it like sponge and keeps it from getting absorbed. 2) passive absorption of B12 was not believed until very recently... in some studies. But many doctors don't read those.

People very low in B12 --- if you have your test results, please post here. Very low test results, really should have 5 mg of methylcobalamin daily on an empty stomach. Borderline low patients can probably get by with 1mg of this daily.
B12 is the only B I know of at this time that has special requirements. Most other vitamins can be taken with food.

My B12 thread:
http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/thread85103.html
You will see from the medical sites and medical studies, on that thread that this is not a simple situation. Trust me, empty stomach for B12. Best taken alone, for that reason. B-complexes with B12 in them, the B's can upset the stomach.
So they are typically taken with food. Methyl B12 alone only costs pennies a day and is not a hardship.

Iron on the other hand can cause significant upset stomachs and constipation. That is because most is not absorbed because the body limits iron absorption because of its toxicity.

When people are low in B12 it is because of a PROBLEM with it. I assume people with problems most likely have low acid or intrinsic failure or they wouldn't be low. Long term vegans get low because of diet. Some drugs deplete B12, also. But since B12 has no upper limit of safety and is easily tolerated and very inexpensive, you don't need to worry about like you should for other types of supplements.

[Debbie D]

When I saw my first neuro, my B12 levels were quite low. I was directed to take 1000 mg of B12 once daily. They've been normal for years now. I take it an hour before lunch...seems to have done the trick, which I was happy about because otherwise I was told I'd have to go on injections.