Everyone keeps telling me that I look pale, it started maybe one or two days ago and I have been feeling really tired. My mom said that it's because I don't get enough iron and that's probably true because I really struggle to eat meat and if I didn't live with my parents then I'd probably be a vegetarian. I know that I should try and find other foods that are rich in iron if I'm not eating meat but I didn't think that I was that bad until everyone starting commenting on it. This may be TMI but I also started my period today and I'm worried that I'll also be losing iron because of that...so should I see a doctor or can I increase my iron levels myself? I know that I'll have to get a blood test if I go see my doctor and I have this huge needle phobia so I'd prefer if I didn't have to :help:
Iron is used to create red blood cells (the ones who carry around oxygen to everything else) so it could get dangerous if an iron deficiency is ignored for too long. The not-enough-oxygen is probably the cause of the tiredness, and the paleness is also a result. I think you get iron pills for people with this deficiency, and I don't think you need a prescription, but it'd be good to make sure of it. Anaemia can get serious.
My girlfriend sometimes has low iron. Just pick up some iron pills from the store. But be careful with those! They have 300% of your daily value, so you only need one every few days. Or your poop will be black.
I would not take your mom's concerns seriously about having iron deficiency. If you're concerned, this is something to discuss with your doctor. The problem with just taking iron supplements is that very few of them are well absorbed by the body, so you end up just crapping them out. If you are concerned about anemia, one of the best things you can do is make or buy fresh juice made from green leafy vegetables, the darker green the better. green (swiss) chard, green or red leaf lettuce, wheatgrass, green pepper. The chlorophyll in these vegetables is chemically very similar to human hemoglobin and high in iron. At the holistic hospital where I used to work, the doctors there would often give patients who were mildly anemic large amounts (32-48 oz) of green leaf juice every day for a week or so, and without fail, iron and hemoglobin levels would increase pretty quickly. And the nice thing is that, unlike iron supplements, nothing bad will happen from drinking that much green leaf juice, even if your body doesn't need the hemoglobin or iron. It probably is worth seeing your doctor, though, just to be sure what's going on. If you are anemic or iron-deficient, there's a reason for it, as most people can eat a pretty crappy diet and still maintain adequate hemoglobin levels, so you want to get things checked out.
