My issue with PMR, calcium and iron

Posted , 8 users are following.

Just wanted to mention that I recently discovered I have low iron. My GP never checks my iron but a specialist happened to do it when I asked her about my hair loss. So now I'm on iron pills (and yes, having side effects from that too).  My thyroid test was ok - she said low thyroid is another common cause of hair loss. 

Dr Google says that if you take your calcium with meals it can block the absorption of iron from foods so you should take calcium between meals. Since the Pred has caused me to have osteopenia I take lots of calcium and had been taking it with all 3 meals. 

I think my main problem is that I don't eat enough meat so I'm rectifying that too. 

Not sure if this will help anyone else.....but wanted to tell you about it in case it rings a bell with anyone. 

Im hoping the low iron is part of why I have had so much fatigue with my PMR.  It would be a bonus if the iron pills increased my energy!

0 likes, 29 replies

29 Replies

Next
  • Posted

    Whoa.....you want to be really careful about how much calcium you take.

    You don't throw calcium off like Vita C or some other things.   It stays

    in your system and can build up in kidneys causing stones.   Check with

    a doc about how much you should be taking daily....

    • Posted

      I do talk to my GP about my calcium supplements so all is well with that. I can't tolerate any dairy so it's important that I take the calcium pills plus eat calcium foods. 

  • Posted

     Hi Mrs CJ,

    Glad you found out about the iron, though it shocks me that docs don't check it.  Make sure you are taking quality iron. My iron was 9, supposed to be 47 (USA), I took iron as directed, three times a day for a month, next blood work, it went down to a 4 because i got the cheap stuff thinking they were all the same.

    I am in my 3rd month of the new stuff and I can do so much more, I am still tired, but not lethargic. 

    I don't take calcium, I eat loads of kale andother greens now, I hope it is enough. 

    Glad you are on your way to more energy!!

    • Posted

      Thanks for the warning about the quality of the iron pills. Here in Canada you have to ask the pharmacist for them - they are displayed behind the counter. So I did have a talk with him when I bought my pills and I hope they are good quality. I will find out when I get my blood test - seeing my GP this week about that. 

      I have been taking these pills almost 3 weeks and I felt better before I started them.  Having some side effects but am hopeful my blood tests will be good and that I can change my dose or try a different form of iron pills.  Currently taking ferrous fumarate.

  • Posted

    Low iron-anemia is common with PMR.

    This is often called the anemia of inflammation or chronic disease. My gastric said pred will, in time, reverse it. I was taking Curcumin. My docs examined every office and I had every test. In the one month I was taking Curcumin my blood count dropped precipitously.

    Curcumin can worsen the anemia of chronic disease and is best not taken. This is according to a study, in the medical literature, which I posed here last year.

    • Posted

      i have been on Pred almost 4 years so I don't think it's going to fix my low iron!  I don't have anemia but looking st my old blood tests my latest number is definitely lower than usual. 

  • Posted

    I have osteopenia but not from predisone, as my last bone scan right before starting the preds showed that my bone density had decreased considerably in a year. In my case, it was vitamin D deficiency which I had been unable to elevate until recently when my blood test for it showed 45 which is a passing grade. Have you had vitamin D checked? So many things to watch for! Hope you feel better soon with the iron supplementation.
    • Posted

      I am going in for a bone density test soon, what is it like, I have never had one. How is it tested?
    • Posted

      Just like having an xray. You just lie there and they click away on a computer and that is it. It does not take long. 
    • Posted

      thankyou! I have so many tests coming up. Gotta do it before my insurance is taken away. 
    • Posted

      I had a bone scan before I got PMR and my bones were ok back then, so I know it's the Pred. 

      Yes i take about 2000 units of Vit D every day and have had a blood test to make sure it's ok. 

      I also added Vit K2-M7 a couple months ago as I've read it's important to take with the calcium, magnesium and D. 

      And i I agree with you - so many things to juggle!!  

      U can't take calcium with Pred or with iron, and should have Vit C foods with iron foods and everything needs to be 1-2 hours apart.....almost need s spreadsheet for this!

    • Posted

      What do you mean "everything needs to be 1 or 2 hours apart? I take D3, K2 and magnesium all at once. Like you say, one needs a spreadsheet to keep track of everything. I was just putting all the pills I take in a little cup which I keep in the kitchen and take them whenever I remember during the day.. Today I found two little cups of tablets I had forgotten to take! I do keep an accurate track of the preds, though.

    • Posted

      Oh.. Now I am understand.. You can't take calcium or iron with the preds.

    • Posted

      The baddy is usually calcium, which tends to interfere with a lot of other things, including, as you know, pred.  It also interferes with iron and magnesium, and perhaps other things, I don't know.  Stands to reason when you think about it.  Calcium is such an essential part of our structure.  Without calcium everything quite literally falls apart.  

      This is why some of us take our calcium at times when it won't interfere with other supplements or our medication, so all of a sudden there could be five or six times a day to remember to take something.  Calcium shouldn't be taken in large doses, so if you are trying to take about 900 mg a day that's three doses right there.  Which shouldn't be taken with iron, for example - and I have to take iron twice a day - or pred, or perhaps other things as well.  

       

    • Posted

      You can take iron at the same time as pred.  Thank goodness. 
    • Posted

      You shouldn't take iron and calcium at the same time.

    • Posted

      Thank you, The rheumi that prescribed the predisone didn't give me any information on how to protect my bones despite having osteopenia that is getting worse. I did manage to get my Vitamin D level normalised on my own but Im not sure how much calcium I should take. I added up the calcium content in the food I usually eat and I think I get enough but with the osteopenia, I'm not sure.

    • Posted

      This is why you should make sure you get all the other things which are good for bones.  It's not just the calcium and D.  We've posted quite a lot of info on this thread already and if you look online you can find a lot of info about dealing with thinning bones the natural way.

      I think appropriate exercise is also really important, because stressing the bones encourages them to build themselves up!

    • Posted

      I take mangnesium and k2 as well, but can't exercise right now, due to brusitis .My oseopenia was caused by vitamin D deficiency my calcium has always been normal. My concern was that there are lots different opinions out there about calcium supplents. Some say that you need to supplement, others say its best to just eat calcium rich food and others to take fosamax or similar. If I weren't on prednisone, I wouldn't take calcium supplements as I get enough from food, I was just wondering what tbe general criteria was to determine whether a person should take calcium or not while on pred. having osteoopenia.

    • Posted

      Nearly everyone I know has been told to take a calcium supplement whilst on pred.  The issue for me is that we need more than calcium and as I keep trying to explain too much calcium without the other things (and we are mostly told only about D3) is bad for us.  With a balanced intake of nutrients we should do very well.  As someone pointed out, don't know if it was here or on another thread, a lot of us can't rely on the integrity of our food supply either.  If the soil is depleted of calcium or magnesium the plants can't absorb it to pass on to us.  We have no way of knowing what our vegetables are really giving us unless we grow our own and make sure the soil is top notch.  That's why our diets should be varied, to touch all the bases, and a few things probably should be supplemented in any case, depending on your own food source.  I think North Americans generally are worse off than people in Europe but I don't know for sure.  Maybe most of their food is coming from factory farms now, too?  I buy as much as I can from our local farmer's market where I know the producers are small scale traditional farmers but in the winter that supply becomes sparse. 

Report or request deletion

Thanks for your help!

We want the community to be a useful resource for our users but it is important to remember that the community are not moderated or reviewed by doctors and so you should not rely on opinions or advice given by other users in respect of any healthcare matters. Always speak to your doctor before acting and in cases of emergency seek appropriate medical assistance immediately. Use of the community is subject to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and steps will be taken to remove posts identified as being in breach of those terms.