Can Thal Minors have too much Iron?

Hello!  I was diagnosed with beta-thalassemia minor when I was a child and now recent test results are showing my Iron is a little on the high side.  This is odd because all through childhood I had iron deficiency along with thal minor.  My Iron Serum level is 145 and my Ferritin level is 127.  While I know this isn't as high an iron as majors have, it just confuses me how all of a sudden my iron would go to the higher end.  I have taken no iron supplements since I was a child and I don't eat a diet rich in iron (I rarely eat red meat).  Should I be concerned about the spike in iron?  Or is it a good thing?

Hi Hellokelli,

Welcome on the forum,do you know what is your hb,sometimes it happens that if you have constant low hb,your body starts absorbing more iron from the gut,check it out.

Zaini.

Thanks Zaini.  My Hb is currently 9.2 and usually hovers around the low 9's.

Do you know if there are negative effects of your gut absorbing excess iron?

Hi hellokelli,

What Zaini said is correct. If your Hb is chronically low, your body can compensate by increasing bone marrow activity, which in turn causes an increase in iron absorption through the gut. This may be happening if these iron levels are a recent phenomenon. Do you have previous iron tests to compare with these?

You should periodically have the iron panel tests run to assess if there is any further upward movement in your levels. Your levels are no danger now, so if they don't continue to rise, there will be no concern. If they do, you may have to watch your diet and eat a low iron diet, but make sure you are getting plenty of B vitamins if you do have to adjust your diet. With thal minor, B vitamins play an important role in maintaining Hb level, so it is important to make sure your diet is good and you should consider a daily supplement. If you can find a way to bump your Hb level up slightly it will decrease any excess iron absorption taking place.

Thanks so  much!  I'm so glad I found this site, the information here is invaluable.  Thanks again!

Hi Hellokelli,

You are welcome ,as Andy told you about B vitamins,i wanted to mention folic acid,do you take folic acid? All thals,whether minor or major,should take folic acid on daily basis,and are you taking any other supplements? Wheat grass is another supplement which can positively affect your hb levels,and if it won't ,it will still give you high energy levels,you should be taking a good multivitamin+minerals with out iron.

Good luck and keep posting,

Zaini.

What everyone is saying is totally right. I have a low HB count and therefore I have to be very careful about my Iron intake because I can actually end up with too much Iron and the results could be devastating! Talk to your doctor about it.
I was thought to have Iron deficiency anemia for years and so I was taking Iron supplements and when I ended up in the hospital because I had too much Iron that's when they started testing me for Thal. It can be very serious so talk to your doctor and BE CAREFUL!

~Krissi