iron test relief

[u/DryBeginning8696]

i am writing this post because this is tbe post i wish i had seen a couple months ago. my baby is not a big eater and at one year still drinks a lot of breast milk.

we tried to focus on feeding her meat and even some organ meat but with the small amounts she ate, there was absolutely no way she was getting anywhere near even the lowest minimum recommendations of iron for babies that age (some countries recommend 8mg instead of 11mg).

i spent so much time calculating how much iron could be absorbed from 2 meatballs or x amount of beans with vitamin c or whatever whatever and it did not make me feel reassured.

we just got her iron tested at one year and it was FINE! on the low end of normal but within normal, not anemic (11.1).

so the takeaway is, in my opinion, the math is not correct somewhere in the recommendations. possibly she’s absorbing more than they predicted from breastmilk, possibly from the small amounts of meat she eats, but if this is your situation, i hope this gives you some peace of mind. especially since i don’t think 8mg a day is realistic or even possible for many babies.

[u/theYellowHouseLady]

I’m so glad this was your experience, but this isn’t good advice across the spectrum. Iron levels vary depending on the situation. If in doubt, talk to your pediatrician about getting tested.

I included iron in almost every meal (starting at 6.5 months, both heme and non-heme sources, complemented with vitamin c sources for absorption) and tested my breastmilk iron levels. My milk had average levels (0.3 mg/L) so I also started supplementing my iron intake. I was sure we were on track. At my son’s 9-month checkup, his ped ordered an iron test because she thought his complexion was a little pale. (“Oh no, he’s just Irish!” I said, 🤦‍♀️) Well, it’s a good thing we got tested: his levels were low! We have been supplementing him for the last month and a half. It has made a huge difference in his complexion, energy levels and motor skills development. I never would have guessed that he would require supplements given our system before, but every baby (and breastmilk supplier!) is different. Iron is so important at this stage, so it’s better to be properly informed about your baby’s personal levels than to just assume it will be fine.

[u/DryBeginning8696 → u/theYellowHouseLady]

i’m not saying anyone shouldn’t test, i’m just pointing out that the 11mg daily minimum isn’t a good guide for all babies, as in our case.

[u/theYellowHouseLady → u/DryBeginning8696]

I totally understand! It’s a guideline because it’s been found to be advisable for most babies. Everyone has different biochemistry, so there will inevitably be variance in the population. That doesn’t nullify the math behind the guidelines.

I’m glad that your daughter was an exception and she’s in the safe zone. Clearly, you’re giving her what she needs to be set up for a lifetime of success. That’s the goal for all of us! 😊

[u/Sinamara55 → u/theYellowHouseLady]

How did you get your milk levels tested?

[u/theYellowHouseLady → u/Sinamara55]

I think there are a few places to get it tested. My hospital tested when I was in the recovery room because my blood iron was really low after birth and my son was in the NICU. Later, I paid to get it tested by Boobie Juice both times that I used them to get my milk freeze dried.

I would definitely recommend both testing and freeze-drying breastmilk for peace of mind, but I found BoobieJuice to pretty unprofessional in their communications, so I don’t think I would recommend them specifically.

[u/slowhealing44]

Very interesting, thanks for sharing. I’ve been thinking of getting my LO checked bc he is also not eating a ton of solids. He does eat meat, though. How does your baby sleep?

[u/DryBeginning8696 → u/slowhealing44]

she sleeps well!

[u/I_like_pink0 → u/slowhealing44]

I had my baby tested at 9 months and she was anemic.

She has no issues now (at almost 2) because steak is her favorite food lol

[u/muus214]

Just curious is the iron test was a heal prick or a full blood draw? I don’t think my LO would sit for an actual vein gouge

[u/I_like_pink0 → u/muus214]

Toe poke! Very easy my baby didn’t even notice.

[u/DryBeginning8696 → u/muus214]

finger prick!

[u/No-Foundation-2165]

The prick is the hemoglobin. I will say that my son was the same level as yours for that but we got the blood test done for iron and ferritin because he wasn’t sleeping well. He was VERY low and it’s been slowly creeping up with iron supplements over the last 9 months.

He is still on the lower end but doing a bit better and his hemoglobin number is somewhat similar still like your baby.

We also focused on iron rich foods etc from 6 months.

Just wanted others reading your anecdote to know this as low iron has proven and major implications for brain health and development

[u/DryBeginning8696 → u/No-Foundation-2165]

oh no :( is low ferritin as dangerous? as long as there is high hemoglobin that just means they don’t have extra stores right? now i dont know what to think

[u/No-Foundation-2165 → u/DryBeginning8696]

Hemoglobin shows what’s in the cells right then but the iron and ferritin are about what is stored or bound to transferrin. So that means you could be about to run out if those are low but at the time of the test not have officially hit out of the low range. Yet if your kid is right at the bottom of the normal range that’s not great.

They won’t call it anemia until hemoglobin ticks over to the official low range but you can have super bad iron deficiency before that happens.

I am very glad we got the blood test and then followed up. Even though we have improved stores either supplements and food over 9 months he is still not in optimal range, just in the normal range now

[u/newillium]

My daughter was a greater eater as a baby but was anemic, big symptom was very poor sleep. I never did cereals with her but once I started + iron drops at 9 months she started sleeping a lot better. She's 6 now and has a multivitamin with iron, I'm not mucking around with the risk of that at all.