Headaches and Anemia

[HaastsNZ]

Okay, for the longest time I have suffered from headaches once or more per day. They can persist all day and made study so difficult. Alongside numerous other illness it really made everything not easy. Recently I have been diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis and likely Crohns. Blood tests indicated low iron which obviously with Anemia being a common symptom with crohns. I asked to be put on iron suppliments. I never thought about it till now (3 weeks on the pills) that I have had very few headaches. Things have actually been very clear. So if you are suffering from the same and you are not already on iron pills ask your doctor about them.

tl;dr. Anemia has caused a lot of headaches for me it might be for you.

p.s Iron tabs can react differently with everyone and can cause problems with digestion. It's touch and go so just keep a close eye on it.

 

[Cat-a-Tonic]

Hi, welcome to the forum. That's actually really interesting, I've had iron deficiency anemia since about March and I'm finally going to get iron infusions starting next week (I can't take the tablets as they upset my stomach far too much). I also suffer from frequent headaches/migraines so I'll be interested to see if mine go away or become more infrequent. Thanks for the information! Have you noticed an improvement in your energy level as well? That's what I'm mainly hoping for, I've had a lot of fatigue & exhaustion lately so I'm hoping that the iron infusions allow me to have more energy.

 

[HaastsNZ]

Hi, I'm interested to hear how this went for you. I did notice increased energy levels. I wasn't as tired as I once, was but this kind of comes and goes as I mostly don't get much sleep anyway.

Thanks

 

[ronroush7]

I take VitIron but I don't notice any difference.

 

[Tubes]

I've dealt with anemia since I first came down with crohns in 94 and soon severe migraines for years I saw a ton of specialists over the years about ten years ago I started regular iron transfusions and I've been on a high dose of Iron which I take twice daily and I've noticed I only get migraines a few times a year now compared to the 4 or 5 a week I used to get and those would last all day.

 

[Eridon2002]

I've been anemic since I was 19 and was first tested. I never get migraines and very few headaches(which I can almost always trace to sinuses or caffeine withdrawal). I have taken megadoses of iron orally; which just upset my GI tract and didn't affect my anemia. I have had iron infusion which did nothing for me; no increase in energy level, nothing(I was still anemic when I was tested a few months later). I'm done with iron supplementing-for me, I consider it good enough that I cook with an iron skillet and eat red meat.

 

[Scipio]

Whether the iron is absorbed from iron tablets or not may depend on how/when they are taken. Iron is absorbed in duodenum - the portion of the intestine immediately after the stomach. Iron is also absorbed best if acidified. This is why it is often recommended to take vitamin C along with the iron. You should also use the kind of pill that dissolves quickly, not the "coated" kind which are designed to dissolve farther south in the gut. Those don't work too well because they miss the best absorption area in the duodenum.

So to maximize iron absorption from pills take a non-coated pill along with 500 to 1000 mg of vitamin C on an empty stomach - first thing in the morning - before breakfast. If you are taking two iron pills/day, repeat this process on an empty stomach before dinner.

Unfortunately, the iron pills themselves often cause an upset stomach, particularly if taken on an empty stomach. So you may have to balance how much stomach upset vs. iron absorption works best for you. I find that some brands of iron pills produce less stomach upset than others. Just don't switch to the coated type. They won't help your anemia much.

 

[Eridon2002]

I've used liquid iron in past, it is supposedly easier to absorb. Wasn't bad tasting and it didn't upset my stomach. I used the Gaia brand(vegetarian and gluten free). However, it was more expensive than iron pills.

 

[ron261]

Hi, I have a question for Scipio, as you stated that Iron ( as well as Other Vitamins ) my input.
I have Crohns and was first found in the small intestine ,( early 40's ) Now that I have had 3 feet taken out from there ( duodenum ) first part of the small intestine and reattach , have I lost too much from the small intestine to absorb any of my vitamin's, I do give myself V=B12 (shots ).

 

[Scipio]

ron261 - I do not know whether you have enough duodenum left or whether other parts of the small bowel can compensate in iron absorption or not. My guess is that the key question is whether you are anemic. If the answer is yes then perhaps your surgery has indeed significantly impaired your ability to absorb the needed iron.

If that is the case then one possible solution for you is have your doctor prescribe intravenous iron treatments. IV iron is more effective than tablets to begin with. And in fact some docs and some articles prefer IV iron over tablets in general for IBD patients, because iron in the gut is known promote inflammation and also alter the composition of gut bacteria and thus may worsen the disease in some patients.

For me the tablets seem to work okay and the Crohn's stays under control, but your mileage may vary.

 

[ron261]

Thank you Scipio, I'm not sure about all you said but a lot has change for me cense then.
I am in the, ( new here ) . Just posted this morning.........

 

[aypues]

I used to suffer frequent headaches until we figured out my iron and ferritin were pathetically low, even taking ferrous gluconate orally. I just did 5 IV iron infusions and got on Humira. The headaches went away!

 

[Cat-a-Tonic]

My headaches have mostly gone away, too. I had 3 iron infusions back in November and since then I've been taking a liquid iron supplement that doesn't upset my stomach. My iron & ferritin levels are within the normal range now and I've had very few headaches lately. I used to get tremendously bad and frequent headaches, but now I rarely get them and they're not nearly as bad as they were before I had the iron infusions.