Iron: A Fine Line

      As seen by the comments above, iron deficiency can increase the reactivity of the immune system triggering asthmatic symptoms and hair loss in mice. The inflammatory response does limit bacterial growth and boost antibacterial defenses.
     The goal should be to normalize iron status rather than load the body with excess iron. Iron deficiency is the most common nutritional deficiency world-wide according to some investigators. Frequency of mild iron deficiency is difficult to determine.
     Excess iron intake can be as much of a problem as iron deficiency. As many as one in 200 people may carry a single gene for a disorder called hemachromatosis which is associated with increased tendency to absorb and store iron. There may be over one million people with a double copy of this gene in the United States. Iron overload in these people can aggravate arthritis, heart disease, cancer and diabetes.
     Many physicians and lay people associate anemia immediately with iron deficiency. Deficiency of other nutrients such as folic acid, B12, and vitamin E may also be involved. If anemia fails to resolve with modest iron supplementation, this does not necessarily mean that more iron is required.

     GNLD Chelated Iron is a relatively safe way to obtain additional iron. The iron is double-wrapped with amino acids to prevent the iron from behaving as a free radical in the digestive tract. Chelation also makes iron less available to pathogens in the digestive tract which have a particular fondness for this mineral.

References:

Clark SF (2008) Iron deficiency anemia. Nutr Clin Pract 23: 128-141.

Crawford, Roberta, The Iron Elephant, Glyndon, MD: Vida Publishing 1993.

Iron, Allergic Asthma, & Hair Loss

     Allergic asthma is the most common form of asthma accounting for 60% of the 20 million asthma sufferers. This condition is characterized by inflammatio an airway obstruction caused by exposure to an allergen.
      Scientists used a clsic model of IgE-mediated allergy in mice to test the effect of low or high iron levels on the severity of the allergic response. They found that iron supplementation markedly decreased allergen-induced airway hyper-reactivity and the underlying immune mediated mechnisms involved in creating the hyper-reactivity.
      The researchers concluded, "Taken together, these studies show that iron supplementation can decrease the severity of allergic inflammation in the lung, potentially via multiple mechanisms that affect mast cell activity. Further studies are indicated to determine the potential of iron supplementation to modulate the clinical severity of allergic diseases in humans."
      Why did the researchers decide to try iron? Iron is well-known to affect the ability to oxygenate tissues and generate energy. A study conducted in 2010 found that iron deficiency acted as a trigger increasing mast cell activation. Mast cells are the key players in IgE-mediated allergic reactions.
     The consequence of the iron deficiency and immune activation in the original study resulted in hair loss. This little study was of interest to me because in my book Your Body's Sign Language (page 31) I reported that Dr. Janet Roberts found iron deficiency to be the main determinant of hair loss in 72% of premenopausal women. Premenopausal women are susceptible to iron deficiency due to the blood loss associated with the menstrual period.
     The level of iron deficiency in the asthma study was mild. Tissue stores of iron were low but blood levels of iron and red blood cell formation were not abnormal. The researchers note, "Our in vivo studies also clearly show that iron supplementation can decrease the severity of inflammation in an in vivo model of allergic asthma in mice with mild iron deficiency." Human beings with a similar degree of iron deficiency to these mice would not typically be classified as iron deficient. Detection of this degree of deficiency would require expensive and invasive testing.
References:
     Hale LP, Kant EP, Greer PK, Foster WM (2012) Iron Supplementation Decreases Severity of Allergic Inflammation in Murine Lung. PLoS ONE 7(9): e45667. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0045667
     Vanderford DA, Greer PK, Sharp JM, Finberg KA, Chichlowski M, et al. (2010) Alopecia in IL-10-deficient mouse pups is c-Kit-dependent and can be triggered by iron deficiency. Exp Dermatol 19: 518-526.