What is the average iron level for men

A needle is used to draw blood from a vein in your arm or hand. Having a blood test with a needle has some risks. These include bleeding, infection, bruising, and feeling lightheaded. When the needle pricks your arm or hand, you may feel a slight sting or pain. Afterward, the site may be sore. Many medicines can affect the results of these blood tests. Some common medicines that may affect your results include:. Alcohol can also affect the results.

Women who are having their menstrual period may have lower iron. You may be asked to have these blood tests in the morning after fasting overnight. Iron levels are closest to normal in the morning and get lower as the day goes on.

Tell your healthcare provider about all medicines, herbs, vitamins, and supplements you are taking. This includes medicines that don't need a prescription and any illegal drugs you may use. Search Encyclopedia. Why do I need these tests? Heme and nonheme iron are absorbed into the enterocyte noncompetitively. Because iron absorption is so limited, the body recycles and conserves iron.

Transferrin grasps and recycles available iron from aging red blood cells undergoing phagocytosis by mononuclear phagocytes. Iron stores tend to increase as age increases, because iron elimination slows down.

Causes of Iron Deficiency Two thirds of body iron is present in circulating red blood cells as hemoglobin. One gram of hemoglobin contains 3. Bleeding is the most common cause of iron deficiency in the UnitedStates and Europe. Iron deficiency caused solely by diet is uncommon in adults in countries where meat is an important part of the diet. In countries where little meat is consumed, iron deficiency anemia is six to eight times more prevalent than in the UnitedStates and Europe.

This occurs despite consumption of a diet that contains an equivalent amount of total dietary iron, because heme iron is absorbed better from the diet than nonheme iron.

In certain geographic areas, intestinal parasites, particularly hookworm, worsen iron deficiency due to blood loss in the gastrointestinal tract. Anemia is more profound among children and premenopausal women in these environs. Because the average woman eats less than the average man does, she must be more than twice as efficient in absorbing dietary iron in order to maintain equilibrium and avoid developing iron deficiency anemia.

A woman loses about mg of iron with each pregnancy. Menstrual iron loss is highly variable, ranging from 10 to mL mg of iron per period. Menstrual iron loss doubles the need for women to absorb iron, compared with men.

Healthy men lose body iron in sloughed epithelium, in secretions from the skin and gut lining, and from small, daily loss of blood from the gastrointestinal tract 0. Men with severe siderosis from blood transfusions can lose a maximum of 4 mg daily via these routes without additional blood loss.

Healthy newborn infants have a total body iron level of mg 80 ppm , which is obtained from maternal sources. Infants consuming cow's milk have a greater incidence of iron deficiency, because bovine milk has a higher concentration of calcium, which competes with iron for absorption. Subsequently, growing children must obtain approximately 0.

Prolonged achlorhydria may produce iron deficiency because acidic conditions are required to release ferric iron from food. Then, it can be chelated with mucins and other substances e. In chronic iron deficiency anemia, the cellular indices show a microcytic and hypochromic erythropoiesis; both the mean corpuscular volume MCV and mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration MCHC have values below the normal range for the laboratory performing the test. If a CBC is obtained after blood loss, the cellular indices do not enter the abnormal range until most of the erythrocytes produced before the bleeding are destroyed at the end of their normal lifespan days.

Examination of the peripheral smear is an important part of the workup of patients with anemia. The microcytosis is apparent in the smear long before the MCV is decreased following an event that produces iron deficiency. Platelets are usually increased in this disorder. A bone marrow aspirate can be used to diagnose iron deficiency. The absence of stainable iron in a bone marrow aspirate that contains spicules and the presence of stainable iron in a simultaneous control specimen permit establishment of a diagnosis of iron deficiency without other laboratory tests.

Other laboratory tests are useful to establish the etiology of iron deficiency anemia and to exclude or establish a diagnosis of one of the other microcytic anemias. Pharmacotherapy Iron therapy without pursuit of the cause of iron deficiency is a poor practice. The response to treatment is assessed by serial hemoglobin measurements until normal red blood cell values are achieved.

Hemoglobin rises slightly for two weeks, then rises by 0. The normal range is 3. Normally, anemia should be corrected within two months. A subnormal response suggests continued hemorrhage, underlying infection or malignancy, insufficient intake of iron, or very rarely, malabsorption of oral iron. The most sensitive and specific criterion for iron-deficient erythropoiesis, however, is absent marrow stores of iron, although a bone marrow examination is rarely needed.

During iron therapy, the anemia and iron panels need to be monitored. Iron supplements are used to provide adequate iron for hemoglobin synthesis and to replenish body stores of iron. Recommended dosages of iron are administered prophylactically during pregnancy due to anticipated requirements of the fetus and iron loss that occurs during delivery. Oral Iron Products The most economical and effective medication in the treatment of iron deficiency anemia is oral ferrous iron salts.

Among the various iron salts, ferrous sulfate is used most commonly. However, claims have been made that other iron salts are absorbed better and have less morbidity. If the quantity of iron in the test dose is decreased, the percentage of the test dose absorbed is increased, but the quantity of iron absorbed is diminished. Iron can be provided by various iron salts e. A typical initial dosage is 60 mg of elemental iron i.

Larger doses are unabsorbed and increase the occurrence of adverse effects, especially dark stool, constipation, and nausea. Ascorbic acid, in the form of a pill mg or orange juice, enhances iron absorption without increasing gastric distress when taken with iron.

For slow-release tablets, the recommended dosage is 50 to mg of elemental iron per day. Recommended dosages in infants and children vary according to age. It is reserved for patients who cannot tolerate or will not take oral iron or for patients who steadily lose large amounts of blood because of capillary or vascular disorders. A hematologist can determine the proper dosage of parenteral iron.

To replenish tissue stores, oral or parenteral iron therapy should continue for six months or longer after correcting hemoglobin levels. It is important to remember that parenteral iron therapy is expensive and has greater morbidity than oral preparations of iron. To treat iron deficiency anemia, your doctor may recommend that you take iron supplements.

Your doctor will also treat the underlying cause of your iron deficiency, if necessary. Your doctor may recommend over-the-counter iron tablets to replenish the iron stores in your body. Your doctor will let you know the correct dose for you.

Iron is also available in liquid form for infants and children. To improve the chances that your body will absorb the iron in the tablets, you may be instructed to:. Iron supplements can cause constipation, so your doctor may also recommend a stool softener. Iron may turn your stools black, which is a harmless side effect. Iron deficiency can't be corrected overnight. You may need to take iron supplements for several months or longer to replenish your iron reserves. Generally, you'll start to feel better after a week or so of treatment.

Ask your doctor when to have your blood rechecked to measure your iron levels. To be sure that your iron reserves are replenished, you may need to take iron supplements for a year or more. If iron supplements don't increase your blood-iron levels, it's likely the anemia is due to a source of bleeding or an iron-absorption problem that your doctor will need to investigate and treat.

Depending on the cause, iron deficiency anemia treatment may involve:. If iron deficiency anemia is severe, you may need iron given intravenously or you may need blood transfusions to help replace iron and hemoglobin quickly. Make an appointment with your doctor if you have any signs and symptoms that worry you.

If you're diagnosed with iron deficiency anemia, you may need tests to look for a source of blood loss, including tests to examine your gastrointestinal tract. Here's some information to help you get ready for your appointment, and what to expect from your doctor. Your time with your doctor is limited, so preparing a list of questions will help you make the most of your time together. For iron deficiency anemia, some basic questions to ask your doctor include:.