If there was a simple test, cheap, reliable, and valid, that could predict part of your future risk of death, with an easy solution, would you use it?
I know I would, and in fact I have.
An iron panel from OPTIMAL TESTING for only £50 with a finger prick test, might not seem like a sexy new test that can save your life, but it is.
Now two parts of that are crucial:
- Serum iron – This is the amount of iron in the blood, circulating freely while bound to transferrin (protein made in the liver)
- Ferritin – Your iron reserves for when blood runs low, or iron storage when you have too much. Ferritin is stored primarily in the liver and also eventually goes into all other organs and tissues.
Serum iron is like a current account and ferritin is like a saving account. When your current account runs low, you top up from the savings account.
But equally, if you have excess, then you stick it in storage, which is FERRITIN.
The challenge is, if your iron gets too high it can be very, VERY inflammatory and reactive.
Not to get too nerdy here, but, iron/Fe 2+ reacts with oxygen or hydrogen peroxide, to create a HYDROXYL radical.
This is known as FENTONS reaction.
The bottom line, HYDROXYL radical is a highly powerful free radical which creates massive OXIDATIVE DAMAGE,which creates more inflammation, which creates more OXIDATIVE DAMAGE.
Thus, my friends, iron excess or full overload will shorten your life via cancer, strokes, diabetes, CVD and more.
It is also related to osteo-arthritis.
But let’s get to mortality:
Note, once you go from under 200 ng/ml, to 200-399 ng/ml, your life expectancy goes from 79 to 76, and up to 400-599 ng/ml (which is iron overload), it goes to 72, and once past 600 ng/ml, it all goes very pear shaped at it drops to 55.
The only way to know your score, is test (don’t guess).
And then what?
If it is under 50, eat more red meat (organs if you can) and add IRON BISGLYCINATE in.
If you are over 50 but under 100 AND ARE SYMPTOMATIC, it is worth trialling more iron to get towards 100 ng/ml, as a subgroup of patients need to hit 100 ng/ml to improve their symptoms.
If it is over 100 ng/ml, how do we get iron levels down, out of the liver, organs and other tissues?
Simple: Give blood, up to x4 a year.
Remember this study from a few years ago:
A group of patients with metabolic syndrome (insulin resistance, glucose intolerance and obesity), were bled twice for a total of between 550 and 800 ml of blood and reassessed at four weeks.
Note that at the assessment none of the patients would be anywhere near the level to be classified as iron overload (which is >400 ng/ml).
The two groups were between 173-188 ng/ml.
In the UK, GP’s are not going to be concerned unless you hit at least 400 ng/ml.
We, on the other hand, want it under 100 but not lower than 50.
And note, if you give blood, they will take 500 ml of blood, every 3 months.
The results are impressive.
Note SPB = Systolic blood pressure
HOMA – Is a combination of glucose and insulin markers
Yellow is blood removal, red is control group.
These are clinically meaningful changes, with zero diet changes.
A drop in systolic blood pressure from 148 to 130 is the difference between the GP prescribing or not.
Glucose 11% drop.
Note, a fasting glucose of over 100 mg/dl (5.6 mmol/L) is considered PRE-DIABETIC.
Thus the GP would de-classify them from pre-diabetic to normal after 2 two blood draws.
Diastolic BP 10% drop.
And of course, ferritin, now down to just above 100 ng/ml in the blood draw group, but staying at an NHS normal 149 ng/ml in the control group, which even I find surprising given the difference between the two outcomes.
This shows just how damaging iron accumulating in your tissues is.
Let that data settle into your brain, you can go from pre-diabetic and hypertension to normal with two simple blood donations.
This is why we call iron the goldilocks mineral, not too little, not too much, just right.
And that is what we are talking about on Wednesday July 1st I will be giving a free evening webinar on the Iron, the Goldilocks Mineral.
Join me for an hour on Wednesday July 1st 8-9 PM
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/iron-the-goldilocks-mineral-tickets-1990879768982?aff=oddtdtcreator
