6 best iron supplements

Review of the best according to the editorial board. On the selection criteria. This material is subjective and does not constitute advertising and does not serve as a purchase guide. Before buying, you need to consult with a specialist.

According to the WHO, over 2 billion people worldwide suffer from iron deficiency anemia. Most of them are women and children. In Russia, 12% of women of childbearing age have anemia, and almost half of fertile women suffer from latent iron deficiency. The reason for this is the peculiarities of female physiology in combination with an insufficient intake of the element with food. Among children, every third has either clinically pronounced anemia or latent iron deficiency.

It enters the body with food, but it is absorbed rather poorly, especially from plant products. If from meat a person can assimilate up to 20% of the contained iron, then from plants – no more than 5%. That is why the WHO considers vegetarians to be at risk for iron deficiency anemia in pregnant women and recommends them iron supplements for preventive purposes from the earliest possible date. Perhaps this is the only group of people who are prescribed such drugs for prevention.

Another group that might need them is women with heavy periods. Their daily requirement for iron is 3 mg, while no more than 2 mg of this substance can be absorbed with food per day. But in practice, if iron deficiency has not yet developed, a vitamin-mineral complex with iron content is sufficient for its prevention – even an inexpensive domestic 'Complivite' contains 5 mg of this element.

Therefore, usually the indication for the use of iron preparations becomes diagnosed anemia – a lack of hemoglobin in the blood.

Signs of a lack of iron in the body

Most of the iron in the body is in the form of hemoglobin – a special substance that binds oxygen from the air and gives it to the tissues, instead removing carbon dioxide from them. Therefore, the amount of iron in the blood is most often judged by the level of hemoglobin. The normal hemoglobin content in the blood for men is 130-170 g / l, for women 120-150 g / l (during pregnancy, the rate decreases to 110-140, since during this period the blood is thinned), for children from one to 14 years old – 110 –150 g / l.

But in practice, normal hemoglobin levels do not guarantee a normal iron content in the body. Full oxygen exchange is vital for all organs and systems: the brain dies without oxygen in 5-6 minutes. The body will do its best to maintain a normal hemoglobin level until all reserves are exhausted. Therefore, iron deficiency is usually judged by other indicators.

index	the norm for women	the norm for men
ferritin	10-120 μg / l	20-250 mcg / l
transferrin	2-4 g / l	2-4 g / l
% transferrin saturation	15-50	20–55
serum iron	80.9-30.4 μmol / L	11.6-30.4 μmol / L

A decrease in any of these indicators indicates a latent iron deficiency in the body.

As the problem grows, there are signs that you can detect on your own:

1. dry, split ends, excessive hair loss;
2. brittle nails
3. 'bumps' in the corners of the lips, cracks, dry skin around the mouth;
4. sleep disturbance: during the day – drowsiness, at night insomnia;
5. the tongue becomes smooth, the papillae disappear;
6. perversion of taste – the desire to eat chalk, earth, rubber and other inedible things;
7. rapid fatigability, muscle weakness.

These symptoms are associated with a lack of a macronutrient in the tissues: it is necessary not only for normal oxygen metabolism, but also for muscles (15% of all iron in the body is in the muscle protein myoglobin), many metabolic processes.

Rating of the best iron supplements

Nomination	a place	Name of product	price
The best iron supplements for pregnant women	1	Totem	505 RUB
	2	Ferro-Folgamma	259 r
	3	Fenuls	280 RUB
	4	Gyno-tardiferon	190 RUB
The best iron supplements for children	1	Maltofer drops	254 RUB
	2	Ferrum-Lek syrup	140 RUB

The best iron supplements for pregnant women

As mentioned, up to 50% of women of fertile age have latent iron deficiency. After the onset of pregnancy, the situation worsens. 320-500 mg of this substance is spent on an increase in hemoglobin and increased cellular metabolism, 100 mg – to build the placenta, 50 mg – to increase the size of the uterus, 400-500 mg – for the needs of the fetus. Thus, an additional 1200–1140 mg of iron is consumed during pregnancy. It is spent especially actively at 16–20 weeks of pregnancy, when the process of hematopoiesis starts in the fetus. By this time, the woman's daily iron requirement increases to 6 mg per day.

For the prevention of iron deficiency, as already mentioned, vitamin-mineral complexes are usually sufficient. But if anemia has already developed, the required dosages of iron become much higher: from 100 to 300 mg per day.

When choosing the best iron preparations for inclusion in the rating, we followed the WHO recommendations, according to which, for the treatment of anemia, including in pregnant women, ferrous iron is preferable. It is in this form that it is best absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract. When used at home, oral (oral) medications are better than injectables. Firstly, to use them, you do not need medical personnel or people with special skills, and secondly, the likelihood of post-injection complications is excluded. Therefore, we did not add injectables to the rating, leaving them for specialists working in medical institutions.

All oral iron supplements are not recommended to be combined with food, as tea, coffee, foods rich in calcium reduce their absorption. For the same reason, they cannot be combined with magnesium and aluminum preparations (most remedies for heartburn).

It is necessary to judge the effectiveness of therapy not earlier than after 3 weeks, the duration of admission is from a month to six months: such a long period is needed in order to renew the body's depot and red blood cells (the average life of an erythrocyte is 120 days).

Totem

Rating: 4.8

Contains iron, copper and manganese. The last two substances are needed to improve the absorption of iron: they are included in the transport proteins. In addition, they help to enhance the antioxidant protection: ferrous ions can activate the process of lipid peroxidation on the surface of the gastric mucosa and thus provoke undesirable effects (heartburn, nausea, diarrhea).

It is available as an oral solution, which must be dissolved in a glass of water or apple juice. You need 2 to 4 ampoules per day. To reduce the likelihood of adverse events, it is recommended to start at the lowest dosage and gradually increase it.

Since the solution can stain the enamel of the teeth, it is better to drink it through a straw, and brush your teeth immediately after use.

Advantages

• well absorbed form,
• complex composition,
• affordable price.

disadvantages

• unpleasant taste
• it is inconvenient to open ampoules.

Ferro-Folgamma

Rating: 4.7

In the composition, in addition to ferrous salt of iron, cyanocobalamin (vitamin B12), folic and ascorbic acid. Vitamin B12 and folic acid improve blood formation, while vitamin C promotes better absorption of iron, and is also a strong antioxidant. According to doctors, this drug increases hemoglobin by an average of 2.5 mg per day, so the patients' well-being improves quite quickly. However, the course of treatment must be completed completely, otherwise the results will be temporary.

Available in capsules, which must be taken 1 – 2 x 3 times a day.

Advantages

• quickly normalizes hemoglobin levels,
• convenient form of release.

disadvantages

• possible side effects.

Fenuls

Rating: 4.5

Another complex that combines ferrous iron with vitamins: contains vitamins of group B (B1, B2, B3, B5, B6), which normalize metabolism, which is often disturbed by iron deficiency; and C. Capsules of the drug contain microgranules from which iron and vitamins are released gradually, which reduces irritation of the gastric mucosa and, therefore, the likelihood of side effects. Take 1 – 2 capsules per day, depending on the severity of the anemia.

Advantages

• usually 1 tablet per day is enough,
• delayed absorption reduces the severity of side effects,
• low price.

disadvantages

• not.

Gyno-tardiferon

Rating: 4.4

Contains iron salt and folic acid, which normalizes hematopoiesis and the formation of the fetal nervous system. Recommended 1 to 3 tablets per day, depending on the severity of the anemia. After the restoration of hemoglobin to normal, the dosage should be reduced to 1 tablet per day, then the course, standard for most iron preparations, is from 1 to 3 months.

When taking iron preparations, you need to remember that they all stain the stool black, and the occult blood test done at this time gives a false positive result, since it measures the iron in the feces (which should not be normal). People suffering from gastritis, gastroenterocolitis and other inflammatory diseases of the gastrointestinal tract should be treated very carefully with such drugs, as they irritate the mucous membrane.

The best iron supplements for children

If, when choosing a medicine for adults, efficacy and safety are primarily taken into account, then when it comes to a product for children, the child's adherence to treatment comes to the fore. No mother can stand it for a long time if the medicine has to be literally shoved into the baby every time.

There is one more nuance: the form of release. Pills should not be given to children under 3 years old, and medications in capsules are prohibited for children under 7 for fear that the child will choke on the pill or capsule. That is, drugs for children are drops or syrups. But ferrous iron has a distinct metallic taste that no supplement can hide – and children often refuse to take them. In addition, bivalent ionic iron, with all its advantages, irritates the mucous membrane of the gastrointestinal tract, and the delicate child's body reacts to this with nausea and vomiting much more often than adults.

Therefore, in the rating of the best iron supplements for children, we included products containing ferric iron – but in a special, modern form: iron hydroxide with a polymaltose complex. It is a large molecule composed of an iron 'core' surrounded by a polymaltose (polysaccharide) shell. Thus, the macronutrient does not directly interact with the cells of the gastrointestinal tract and does not irritate them; does not show its characteristic taste in drops, liquids and syrups; does not interact with other substances. The absorption of such iron is slower than that of bivalent, but in general, the absorption is sufficient for effective therapy.

Another advantage of such drugs is that they cannot be poisoned due to slow absorption, and this is very important when it comes to a child.

Dosage of medicines containing iron hydroxide with polymaltose complex: 3-5 mg of active iron per kg of body weight. More precise instructions will be given by the attending physician: self-medication when it comes to children is not very reasonable.

Maltofer drops

Rating: 4.9

1 ml of solution (20 drops) contains 50 mg of iron, that is, 1 drop – 2.5 mg. Thus, they are very easy to dose: 1-2 drops per kilogram of the child's weight per day, depending on the severity of the anemia. The daily dose can be taken at one time by mixing the drops with juice or any soft drink. The product has no age restrictions.

Advantages

• safety,
• convenient dosage method.

disadvantages

• contains sugar

Ferrum-Lek syrup

Rating: 4.6

1 scoop of syrup contains 50 mg of active iron. In the same way as the previous remedy, the medicine can be mixed with any soft drink or added to baby food. Due to the fact that the minimum amount of syrup that can be measured is half a measuring spoon, the drug is not recommended for children under one year old.

Advantages

• safety,
• low price.

disadvantages

• only for children over one year old.

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Attention! This rating is subjective and does not constitute an advertisement and does not serve as a purchase guide. Before buying, you need to consult with a specialist.