"In my personal experience and in talking to other runners
throughout my career, it has been made apparent that different bodies absorb
iron differently.
Profound, I know.
But seriously, I've had teammates who have really struggled with
this too. They were directed by a doctor to take this amazing wonder supplement
and did not see much of an improvement but then they started taking a basic
Ferrous Sulfate liquid form available over the counter at your neighborhood
pharmacy and BOOM...Iron back to normal levels. They shared this story with me
so I decided to try their 'miracle find'. Definitely didn't work the same
way....AND I had some pretty knarly side effects (black tongue, stained
teeth…etc).
I've seen the best results personally with Solgar brand Chelated
Iron pills. When I went up to the OTC in Colorado Springs, the sport med doc
shared with me the name of the iron pill he recommended to the endurance
athletes that go up there to train- Feosol. It is a pretty high potency form,
not for the faint of stomach. I decided to gave it a try while I was there- if
the sports Dr. for Team USA recommended it, it MUST be good…. when my next
blood test rolled around, I actually noticed a slight decrease in my levels. To
me, this proved yet again that each body is different.
Unfortunately, the best way to figure this out takes a while and
can be expensive. Get your blood tested. Hit it hard and consistent with one
form. Test again and compare your levels. I really don't think that any doctor
will be able to tell you which form is 'better' for you. He should, however, be
able to point you in the direction of the highest quality, highest potency,
highest bio-available. I would start your experimentation there but understand
that your body is unique and you probably won't know how it will react to
something until you try it. With so many options on the market, just don't
waste time trying to force it to absorb something that it does not want to. It
probably won't happen.
Thats
really all I have to contribute on the topic. Best of luck in this. Let me know
if you think differently or have any more specific questions. "
