Advice for Anemic 13 Month Old Taking Iron

Just have her HCT rechecked soon. Get her iron level up to where it should be THEN back off.

My son had the same thing, and right now your daughter needs all the iron she can get. You won't overdose from beef and spinich. And the 30mg a day should come in 3 doses, correct? You just need to do this iron 'therapy' for about 3 months or so- it seems really intense, but her numbers/iron level will come up and you won't have to push it so hard in the future. We did that for my son when he was one and now he's 2 and a half and simply eats his flintstone vitamin each day and is doing fine. So stick with it even though it seems intense, its only temporary. We noticed a big difference in sleeping and energy level after our son was on iron therapy.

I know of a product that i have used for myself and our children. It's called body balance. Call me if you want more info. J. ###-###-####

Hi J.,

I am a Registered Nurse and a mother of 3 grown children as well as a Grandma of a beautiful 2 year old girl. Ideally, your daughter should get all of the iron she needs from the food that she eats. Did her Dr. specify how long she would have to take the iron supplement? There are a couple of things you can watch for that may indicate too much iron: Watch her bowel movements - her stool will be dark because of added iron but too much iron and not enough water can cause constipation and hard, painful stool or it may do the opposite and cause diarrhea. Iron supplements can also cause stomach aches so you may want to watch her for signs/symptoms of tummy upset such as increased fussiness and decreased appetitie or reluctance to eat. Also watch to see if she get's cold easily or has difficutly or painful breathing. All of these things could be signs of too much iron. One more thing you can try is to give her orange juice with her food as this helps the body absorb iron. Don't hesitate to call her Dr. if you have any questions or concerns, that's what they are there for! Hope this helps. Good Luck! K. N.

You are on the right track- Follow your doctors advice and stay in touch with him... He will probably want to check you daughters iron again in a future appointment.

Constipation is a sign of to much iron- just watch her, her energy should be increasing as she gets some iron in her. Fatigue is a sign of lack of iron.

We did Poly-Vi-Sol with iron for a hematocrit of 7 as well as whole milk with Carnation Instant Breakfast. He did just fine, and came back strong. I'm not sure how much iron is in it. Also, if you're nursing, taking extra iron yourself will help. I was unable to nurse due to our little guys other issues. One thing I found, is that if the iron difficiency is secondary, it's usually very easily and quickly resolved. Our doctor told us to make sure we keep him on higher doses of iron, but also zinc. As long as your daughter isn't too constipated, you're probably just fine with what she's taking. I hope she gets better soon!

I would skip the iron supplements and instead do a more natural (and less likely to constipate) supplement like Floridix. You can find it at your local health food stores. Midwives use this method to improve hematocrits during pregnancy and find it more effective than chelated iron.

My daughter now almost 12 yrs old was also anemic around
that age. She was also on the iron supplement.....I also
checked the labels on cereals, you would be amazed at the
iron content in some of them. Caption Crunch w/crunch
berries at the time had more than the healther cereals....
just remember to feed it to her without the milk. We did
the beer, cereal and supplement for about 6 mos......she
was back to normal. When she got older I gave her the
chewy vitamins, be careful with those, not many are high
in iron.
Now, when my daughter asks for certain foods that are high
in iron, especially beef we give it to her....just because
we know her body is needing it.
Good luck.

I don't know how much is too much, but I do know that it WILL constipate her. Be very careful.

Too much iron is dangerous. If she is eating iron enriched foods, even ground turkey, chicken has iron not just red meat, then I would talk to the Dr about if she needs the supplement. I was warned big time not to use this supplement unless it is in severe cases of anemia. Just call your Dr and maybe have her retested after a week of eating iron enriched foods. I know the supplements may build her back up and when she is back to norm I would think it isn't safe to keep her on it at all. Just my thoughts. Supplements should ONLY be used if a child isn't eating well.
Vitamin C helps the absorbtion of Iron too.
There are a lot of things yummy that have iron in them.

http://pediatrics.about.com/od/nutrition/a/06_iron_foods.htm

My daughter was born with no iron (a very long story involving prenatal blood transfusuions) and, to add to it, we do not eat meat. If you are still nursing, the floradix that has been recommended is great and you should take it as well. My pediatrician and perinatologits told me that the baby will deplete your iron supplies so you need to keep them up in yourself too. It is very pricy. I was told that the issue is not that breastfeeding "bad", it is that formula is fortified with iron and prevents anemia while breastfeeding does not.

My daughter loves tofu and beans. Be sure to counter the iron with plenty of fiber and you'll be fine. I brown the tofu in a cast iron pan to add to the soluable iron. She likes it with brown rice (fiber) and a bit of terriaki to sweeten it all up (quite easy to make if you can't find an appropriate store-bought variety). Be careful of canned food. It has high levels of BPA (I understand that it is a more likely source than plastic bably bottles). Also, apricots are a "dirty dozen" item with very high pesticide residues. Organic dried apricots soaked in hot water to soften them and cut into small pieces are great at this age. I get them in bulk at the natural foods store. Blackstrap molasses is high in iron (not the regular grocery store kind but the natural foods variety). Once you're used to the strong flavor, it is very good on cut-up fruit.

Also, there is nothing wrong with a supplement. I was told that iron is key in development of many of the body's systems, including the brain. It is also important for the rapid growth that babies go through. You do not want to risk long-term setbacks because of a generalized fear of modern medicine. Modern medicine saved my little one and I know they only have the best interests of your child at heart.

Dear J.,
Possibly already mentioned is a product called Floradex- you can find it at your Health Food Store or order it through Cascade Birthing Supplies on the net www.1cascade.com/. It is a wonderful natural iron supplement that won't cause constipation. That, combined with the foods you are giving her are great. I have always been surprised that apricots are one of the highest in iron- plus raisins- (red grapes-cut them up small for her) are also a great source of iron. When you feed her red meat, spinach, any food high in iron, don't feed her milk at the same time- calcium makes it harder to assimilate the iron, but vitamin C, such as orange juice helps our body's digest and utilize the iron in the foods we eat. It may be tricky at first to feed her vit c foods/juice and iron foods, but after a while she will have attained her iron level that she needs and it won't matter as much!

Also legumes like refries are high in iron, but my little ones would always get a rash from eating them at an early age. Your's might be fine with them.

Those suggestions are also good for mothers that need to "up" their iron levels. It helps with fatigue and builds the blood for childbearing as well.
Hope the info helps.
H. B.

J., get some chlorophyl and put about 1/4 teaspoon in some juice and have her drink it every day, a couple of times a day. The iron supplements that kids take are so harsh, and not easily absorbed by the body. Chlorophyl is one molecule off blood, and used to be used in place of blood for transfusions. It will get the red blood cells hopping and bring her hematocrit up in a very short time!

I would like you to know I have problems getting enough iron when I am pregnant. I refuse to take iron pills due to the fact they tear my stomach up something terrible. Meat and spinach is wonderful, but the easiest and most bag for your buck is Cream of Wheat hot cereal. You could feed her cereal once a day and even make some extra and make a drink out of it. Most likely feeding your baby the Cream of Wheat cereal in the mornings, giving her spinach and meat through out the week would give her more than enough iron to not have to use supplements at all. I would ask your doctors office to be sure, but I know it did the trick for me three times now. I wouldn't worry about natural iron through food sources. I would be on the look out for her having an upset tummy from the supplement just in case. I KNOW iron can cause stomach problems. Good Luck!!! By the way, I don't mean just breakfast cereals, but really Cream of Wheat...The iron content in this cereal is way above any other source I have found including the greans and meat.

Hi J.,

I'm not in the medical profession and I haven't dealt with this for 16 years; however, my oldest had to take liquid iron. She was exclusively breastfed (a good thing ... don't think for a minute you're doing any disservice there!). After months of forcing the liquid down her throat, we stopped. She's fine, she always was. She didn't need to have that much iron and her skin is naturally Irish ivory. I'd try to give her iron through diet only. If she's still breastfed, you shouldn't have any constipation problems.

Blessings,
L.