Stopped being Vegan 4.5 months ago, Ferritin levels much higher

[ZenAlex]

I was Vegan for 8 years. I made sure to pay attention to what I ate.

I was eating 200-250% the RDA as a vegan (because vegan iron is non-heme iron), my Iron levels were all perfectly fine, except Ferritin was sometimes as low was 45 which is still normal, but I was surprised it would sometimes be normal but not optimal despite lots of iron in my diet. 

I'm still 90% vegan, but eat salmon 3x a week and a few more animal products.

My ferritin has just test as 160.

Some places say that's optimal, others say that's a big high,  although I know ferritin can fluctuate, because when I was vegan it was fluctuating between 45-75.

[PsychedelicEagle]

I think ferritin gets higher not only due to higher iron stores in the body, but also when there's inflammation. A single ferritin measurement is not reliable as you said. Avoid measuring it when you are sick, it'll perturb the results.

When I was not vegan, my ferritin was in the 150 range too. I wasn't as healthy back then. After becoming vegan and some blood donations I hit 40.

Could it be that a non-vegan diet incurs higher inflammation?

Edited June 21 by PsychedelicEagle

[ZenAlex]

Just now, PsychedelicEagle said:

I think ferritin gets higher not only due to higher iron stores in the body, but also when there's inflammation. A single ferritin measurement is not reliable as you said.

When I was not vegan, my ferritin was in the 150 range too. I wasn't as healthy back then. After becoming vegan and some blood donations I hit 40.

Could it be that a non-vegan diet incurs higher inflammation?

My inflammation levels have been checked, they're good. 

My inflammation levels are very low and the doc commenting on the test says no concerns with that. Only slightly higher than they were as a vegan. 

[PsychedelicEagle]

Just now, ZenAlex said:

My inflammation levels have been checked, they're good. 

My inflammation levels are very low and the doc commenting on the test says no concerns with that. Only slightly higher than they were as a vegan. 

Good to know. So it could be that with the new diet your body is absorbing more iron indeed... Have you looked at the other iron-related measurements such as total binding capacity, latent binding capacity, transferrin saturation, etc? That could give you a better picture (I'm not a specialist but I've had these tested in the past).

And, for how long have you started eating animal products?

Personally, I believe lower ferritin levels are better. But I don't see how you still relatively low meat intake would affect it that much... Just jotting down my perspective.

[PsychedelicEagle]

Another thing to keep in mind is that Vitamin C highly increases iron absorption when both are taken together. Especially for heme iron, I would guess, as it's much more absorbed by the body.

Also, heme iron increases non-heme iron absorption, IIRC.

I remember these numbers because I deliberately worked to bring my ferritin levels down. IMO the > 100 marker are very common in today's population but I don't think it is really natural, as today people eat a lot more animal protein than in the past. So I deliberately try to stay on the lower end.

Keep in mind I'm no nutrition specialist and these are my personal beliefs.

Edited June 21 by PsychedelicEagle

[Michael569]

If you want to be 100% sure about your iron status, it is a good idea to do the whole panel including total serum iron, ferritin, UIBC, TIBC and transferin . I think Thriva UK have such a test where you can choose either finger prick or venal draw. 

Edited June 21 by Michael569

[Schizophonia]

Why did you stop being vegan ? 🤔

[ZenAlex]

Just now, Schizophonia said:

Why did you stop being vegan ? 🤔

Long story. I'm still mostly vegan but the way I feel and my blood work is better. 

I couldn't optimize my Omega 3 status also as a vegan, despite consuming plenty of omega 3 sources and DHA supp. 

3 months of salmon resolved it. 

Veganism isn't a bad option, I just don't necessarily think it's optimal for everyone. 

[PsychedelicEagle]

6 hours ago, ZenAlex said:

I couldn't optimize my Omega 3 status also as a vegan, despite consuming plenty of omega 3 sources and DHA supp. 

Interesting. Did you do the Omega 3 Index test or the serum one? Asking cause serum only reflects the last days of eating, but probably you know this.

I'm also vegan (most of the time) and taking Omega 3 supplements (800mg/day of DHA+EPA), and eating a lot of freshly-ground flaxseed (I deliberately ground it myself right before eating since I've heard otherwise the Omega 3 can easily get oxidized. Anyway, flaxseed only has ALA. The same (oxidation) can happen for supplements, so I wonder if what I'm taking is good enough.

Edited June 21 by PsychedelicEagle