2023-07-04 08:06:29
Iron levels should be checked regularly in girls and young women: without realizing it, 40 percent have such low iron levels that symptoms such as tiredness and dizziness can occur. This is shown by a study in the journal “JAMA”.
Measured by ferritin, a transport form of iron, 40 percent of the young women between the ages of 12 and 21 had a low iron value, every 17th even so low that they had iron deficiency anemia – anemia that can increase mortality if left untreated. The proportion was even higher for women from low-income families and particularly slim women.
This can also be the case before menstruation: 27 percent of the girls who have not yet had their first period also had low iron levels. Prof. Dr. Angela Weyand of the University of Michigan thinks it’s high time that iron levels were routinely tested in young women, even if symptoms such as fatigue, mental health problems, shortness of breath, pale skin, rapid heartbeat or headaches are absent: “Iron deficiency is an underestimated problem with side effects , but the symptoms and even anemia are downplayed in young women,” Weyand said. In addition, young women are rarely asked regarding their menstrual bleeding when they visit the doctor, so they may not know if they have unusually heavy bleeding that causes them to lose a lot of iron.
Weyand thinks it makes sense to advise young women to eat iron-rich foods – both animal foods and vegetables, nuts and seeds. If ferritin levels are low despite a balanced diet, appropriate multivitamin or iron supplements may be recommended. For the treatment of more severe iron deficiency, iron is given intravenously.
Which: DOI 10.1001/jama.2023.8020
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