Lately I have been brusing really easily. I hit my elbows and shins a lot because I'm super clumsy, and lately I have noticed much more brusing than usual, even though when I bump myself it doesn't really hurt. Also, last night we bombed the house because our cat had fleas, and after the house was open for like 3 hours (leading me to believe all the poison was gone, or aired out) I was walking around doing stuff and I got dizzy and felt like I was gonna faint. Sometimes I feel kind of cloudy, and hazy and wierd- mostly at night. What could this possibly be a signal of? My Mom thought iron deficiency, but I take a multivitamin which gives me 50% of my needed intake, then eat fortified cereals, drink fortified soymilk, ect.ect. I also thought maybe b12, but my supplement has 2550% of the B12 I need. (what is up with that, anyway?!) Any ideas?

lovenlight,

linz

I started feeling tired, cloudy, and weird too, even though my multi had 50% of my iron and I ate the same sorts of things you do. I started taking iron and feel normal again. Vegetarians need more iron than non-veggies - I think we actually need 1.8 times the amount because it's not as easily absorbed from plant sources. Make sure you don't buy too high of a dose, either, since that's bad too.

Thank you. For some reason in the past I have had problems taking iron pills- getting really sick and puking. Maybe the dose was too high- I can't understand why my multi doesn't make me sick, but those iron pills did.....So maybe I should try the iron pills again.

lovenlight,

linz

Have your iron as well as your ferritin tested, only if your ferritin is low, consider iron pills. Iron is very aggressiv, promotes the development of free radicals, aging, degeneration.

I would say get a blood test to make sure it's an iron problem, but it does sound like one. I can't take iron pills or vitamins with iron in them because of stomach problems (same as yours, it sounds like), so I have to get all my iron from food. Krista told me to use blackstrap molasses, and that's helped a lot. Also, when I get dried fruits (prunes and such) I've been getting the kind that are fortified (20% RDA of iron instead of, say, 5%). I've been good on the iron front for a while now, actually, but it was tough getting it right at first.

Alright, I will look up some food sources of iron and try harder to get an adequate amount; hopefully that will help. I take my vitamin at night and sleep for 7 or 8 hours, so I haven't noticed any unpleasant side effects, but I am sure if I take any more iron I will start to get sick. I have been trying to get in for a blood test, but I have been so busy lately. I know thats a poor excuse to neglect my health; I'll make an appointment and get a blood test. I hate blackstrap molasses, but thats ok, I can choke it down anyhow. Thanks, both of you!

lovenlight,

linz

I was actually just about to post something similar, except I actually feel fine, not tired or dizzy, but I have been bruising a lot lately. Do you think it could still be an iron deficiency?