Iron Tablets

[Lucasmum]

So I was given them yesterday.

When do you ladies take your iron tablets? I have been told not to take them with milk tea and eggs, so that rules out mornings at the weekends as I have cereal with milk weekdays I could do it in the morning as I dont have my breakfast till about 1000 and leave about 0730

I took the first one at about 1930 last night, but I spent all night feeling very very ill severe nausea and lets just say the constipation issues are currently resolved I still feel rough today and its caused my blood sugars to spike, not sure if thats from the tablet or not, my body isnt great at accepting new medication and its quite common for this to happen for a few days until it gets used to it

Just wondered if anyone had any experience and what worked best for them

 

[SleepyBaby]

From what i know about iron tablets i was told to take them on a full stomach, was never told to avoid taking them with any foods, they made me constapated, very much so, after giving birth i thought they gave them to me to punish me lol ( though it can go the oppisit way) oh and they turn your poop pure black, no one warned me about that, i freaked out but its normal!

If they are making you very ill go back to your doctor and ask him for an alternitive, i think there is a different type but it takes longer to restore iron to your system!

If you cant take the ones you have at the minute as they are making you very ill, cut down the does or stop and eat more foods with iron in it until you can get to your doctor?

 

[Blessedbaby]

I take mine in the morning after I eat my breakfast.

 

[smileyfaces]

I just take it when I remember. I've never been advised about the best time to take them...just told take one a day!

 

[Lucasmum]

I think its only avoid those foods as they can make it less effective

Still feel lousy and my blood sugars are still to high but I'm not concerned about that I can increase insulin if need be and I'll call my nurse Monday to discuss the readings, thankfully they are not high enough to have me worried, I think a good nights sleep will also help me out, also if DS stopped talking for 10 mins it may help

My body is a bit pants and any new medication can make me feel like this for a day or two so hoping its just that, I'll carry on with the evening for now and see how it goes

 

[hopefullys]

I take mine with food as I find they digest better n I don't get indigestion. I first took them before bed which was the worst time to take them! I don't think from taking one would have any effect straight away as they take days to get in your system. They don't constipate me they make go to the toilet more! X

 

[Isme]

Iron is absorbed better when taken with a source of vitamin C (orange juice works for this). It is also best to take it away from calcium (like milk), as calcium can block iron absorption. Any time is better than never, though. I'd say just go with whatever works for you. For some people morning is best. Other people prefer to take it before bed. I take my with a late breakfast or lunch (don't drink milk, so breakfast is not an issue for me) because it's in my prenatal and that's when I prefer to take it. When I was taking a separate iron supplement, I would just take it whenever I happened to be eating something without loads of calcium... and I remembered to do so. Lol

 

[florence_]

Hey girls just wanted to add i have had to start taking iron tablets this week and have felt horrendous!! Ferrous fumarate about 610mg well long story short ive had all the side effects after only 3 days taking them. My sisters a midwife and she said try spartone its natural remedy and i bought from boots as its to expensive for drs to prescribe on nhs but its natural and doesnt have the constipation of gastric side effects its liquid form and the one i got is sachets prediluted with apple juice for better absorption. The reason its free from side effects is because the dose is smaller but absorption higher compared to tablets like ferrous sulphate or ferrous fumarate. Basically at nearly 38 weeks (my ticker is wrong) constipation scares the life out of me esp after ds i needed stitches so really dont need this to be a problem. Ask ur healthcare providers or google it. Im not an expert but ive switched cause apparently it works better xx

 

[florence_]

It has a coppery after taste but i can deal with that over nausea and constipatiin x

 

[Buffyx]

I took two a day with orange juice and my iron levels more than tripled They were very low.

 

[hopefullys]

I saw those ones in boots I think they was about £20 for a box but wasn't sure if really there was any difference in them working. I don't have constipation problems with them just sometimes indigestion x

 

[Pippylu]

I've taken iron supplements most of my adult life. A full stomach is best and (as pp said), take it with vitamin c if possible, as it helps with absorption. Taking it with or around when your drinking tea or coffee, or anything with caffeine in it, will make it much less effective. I currently take a slow release iron supplement called Fefol, which I have no issues with. The liquid iron and some of the other brands make me feel icky too, so I'll be sticking with the Fefol after babies are born

 

[Kmx]

I was feeling very abnormally tired & my iron was borderline around 10 weeks ago. I didn't want to wait for iron blood tests so I went to boots & bought the spa tone hoping it may help. After a few days of taking two mixed with orange juice I genuinely felt the difference with zero of the nasty iron tablet side effects. They're expensive but very good.

 

[Moominmummy1]

I agree with pp Spatone is very good but on the expensive side.I pay £12 for a months supply but it says on box pregnant ladies to take 2x sachets.Definitely no side effects like iron tablets but after taste is liked you locked a metal gate lol

 

[Moominmummy1]

Licked even !

 

[bumble b]

I threw up so bad on the iron tablets so i bought spatone apple flavour liquid iron. It was only about £8 on offer on amazon & has no side effects xx

 

[Lucasmum]

Its good to hear its not just me, I feel a lot better today, I think my body just reacted to something different, I know its unusual as its only the one tablet but I have always been the same with any new medication one dose is enough to make me feel like I'm dying

Have sent OH to buy orange juice and I also took it after my meal last night rather than before

If I have any further poop problems then I will look at the other types you lovely ladies have suggested

 

[pacificlove]

When I picked up my iron supplement I had a big long discussion with the pharmacist over them. He said to take them right in the middle of a big meal. (I did read the leaflet that came with them which said on an empty stomach) . I am listening to the advise the pharmacist gave me and have had no additional issues. Definitely less out of breath now!

As my pharmacist said: iron is the most potent drug you can buy without a prescription in Canada. They keep tabs on who buys how much of it here as it is an over the counter drug that a child could very easily overdose on if accidentally ingested.