Thank you so much for sharing and breaking this down. This is so interesting! At 42 (and only 1 ovary), I have definitely found difficulty recently in word recall and have experienced brain fog. I’ve also had heavier periods AND experienced low iron in the past, as many women of reproductive age have. This gives me hope (though I know it was a small sample size)!
Great question! Ferritin is a better test of iron stores, although the full iron panel, which includes serum iron, TIBC, Transferrin and % sat, is useful.
Thank you. Could you remind us what ferritin levels were considered (and then sort-of proven) to be ‘good’ in this study? Or how would you read a full iron panel?
This study didn't set a cut off. They just showed a direct correlation between ferritin levels and cognitive performance. There was a "dose response" but, remember these were women whose iron levels were high without taking iron. In general, if someone is symptomatic I target a ferritin of 50, especially if the iron panel is consistent with low iron. But this study wasn't targeting a specific iron/ferritin level. We will need more data to know if targeting certain ferritin levels with supplements is helpful.
Thank you so much for sharing and breaking this down. This is so interesting! At 42 (and only 1 ovary), I have definitely found difficulty recently in word recall and have experienced brain fog. I’ve also had heavier periods AND experienced low iron in the past, as many women of reproductive age have. This gives me hope (though I know it was a small sample size)!
I am so glad it's helpful. At the very least it's worth asking your doctor about checking your ferritin level.
Yes, exactly! Thank you!
Can you clarify if this applies to low iron or ferritin? Which test matters more?
Great question! Ferritin is a better test of iron stores, although the full iron panel, which includes serum iron, TIBC, Transferrin and % sat, is useful.
Thank you. Could you remind us what ferritin levels were considered (and then sort-of proven) to be ‘good’ in this study? Or how would you read a full iron panel?
This study didn't set a cut off. They just showed a direct correlation between ferritin levels and cognitive performance. There was a "dose response" but, remember these were women whose iron levels were high without taking iron. In general, if someone is symptomatic I target a ferritin of 50, especially if the iron panel is consistent with low iron. But this study wasn't targeting a specific iron/ferritin level. We will need more data to know if targeting certain ferritin levels with supplements is helpful.