Understanding and treating the toxicities of iron can help restore a person's health.
The balance of iron in our bodies is essential for correct functioning. Too much or too little iron can have serious consequences. Screening for and monitoring iron toxicity is an important way of reducing its impact on the body, but you have to know what iron toxicities are before you can look for them. Iron toxicity occurs in around 1 percent of Americans, according to Dr. Ronald Hoffman.
Blood Transfusions
People who undergo repeated blood transfusions can develop iron toxicity. The problem poses a dilemma because the transfusion itself may be life sustaining, helping the patient deal with other ongoing illnesses such as anemia, thalassemia, sickle cell disease and myelodysplastic syndrome, according to IronToxicity.com. The body cannot excrete the excess iron it takes in from new doses of red blood cells, so it experiences overload (hemochromatosis). The iron in a transfusion patient's blood can increase from 35 percent to an incredible 95 percent in only four months of treatment for another disease. Anyone who has received 20 transfused units of blood or has had 10 separate transfusions is considered at risk. It should be noted there is also a gene in some people's DNA that can increase the absorption of iron from food and cause toxicity even without blood transfusions.
Iron Chemistry
Iron is a complicated compound because it keeps changing state inside the body. In its "reduced" state, it is a positively charged ion called ferrous iron. In its "oxidized" state, it is even more positively charged and is known as ferric iron. In practical terms, this means that it can help out in some important reactions inside the body, such as enzyme processes and energy production. However, if it starts to build up and accumulate inside the cells, it can disrupt natural processes and become a serious factor in disease development. Although iron toxicity is highly dangerous, a deficiency of iron in the diet can also have harmful consequences.
Serum Ferritin
An indicator of iron toxicity is serum ferritin levels. If the ferritin level in a person's serum is consistently 1,000 mcg/L or higher, iron toxicity may have occurred. Levels in the plasma of a patient can also be detected and used for estimating iron burden. Ferritin is referred to as a marker for the disease if used in this way. Low levels indicate a normal, healthy situation. For men, this should be 300 mcg/L or less and for women, 150 mcg/L or less (menstruation accounts for the difference), according to IronToxicity.net. People who have died of organ failure as a direct result of iron overload can have 97 percent serum ferritin.
Consequences
Iron toxicity causes several serious problems inside the body and can eventually lead to organ failure and death if left untreated. Initial symptoms, such as tiredness and abdominal pain, can be missed, and sometimes it is only later, when serious complications develop, that iron toxicity is recognized. Effects on the body can include pituitary gland failure, thyroid deficiencies, heart muscle damage, liver function failure and pancreas damage. Men can also suffer damage to their reproductive system. Other common symptoms of toxicity include an enlarged liver, skin pigmentation, lethargy, joint disease, loss of hair, amenorrhea (loss of menstrual periods in women) and impotence.
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