Vitamins

Hi,

My 9 year old son is Thal minor. His hemoglobin is 10 and iron is 48. Doctor suggested giving him 1 tablet of Ferrous Gluconate that has 35mg elemental iron. I bought it and then on the bottle it says adults take 1 daily. Is this for kids too? On the bottle it says "there is enough drug in this package that can harm a child". I am confused. can I give 1 tablet to my 9 year old son? Will this vitamin help him? Please help me.

Thank you,
Mom

Hi Mom,

I would suggest not taking iron until a full iron panel is done. This would include serum iron, serum ferritin and TIBC. Unless this panel definitely shows iron deficiency, iron should not be given. This is the most common mistake doctors make with thal minors. The low Hb is not due to lack of iron, but due to the lesser hemoglobin production of thal minor. I'm not certain if it's the ferritin or serum iron that is 48, but neither would show deficiency at 48. Taking iron when not needed can cause iron build up over the years and should be avoided.