6 month labs are back and some values are low

[Amanda131 214]

Hey just wanted to chime in here (lab rat going on 25 years this next year).....look on your CBC (cell blood count).....the MCV (Mean Cell Volume) is a better indicator of Iron stores. When your Iron stores get low your body starts producing SMALLER red cells. Your MCV should be 76-100. When you see it less than 75 you have tiny (microcytic) cells. This is due to low iron. You can look up "iron deficient anemia" to see symptoms. Your ferritin is directly linked to your low iron.

Your body only makes new red cells around every 120 days.....so you have to take iron for MONTHS to get your stores back up (hard to explain this to people...they take iron for one week and wonder why they don't feel better - it takes MONTHS)

Prealbumin is also directly related to diet. Malnourished SEVERE is less than 8. Mild is 12-15. Moderate is 8-10. So yours at 17 is fine. Yes it is on the lower side but I think if someone did a study the general population of sleevers normal is prob alot lower than the population of people who are eating alot more.

Also....serum iron of 42 is wonderful especially for females. I run them all day long and most females run in the 30's. Make sure you don't take iron the night before or the morning of your lab tests and are measuring what is really in your bloodstream and not what you just ate .

Parathyroid is on a NEGATIVE feedback loop with Calcium. Calcium goes up parathyroid goes down. Calcium goes down parathyroid goes up.

Normal parathyroid is 10-60.

My doc has me on:

Bariatric Advantage Vitamins....Folic Acid 800 mcg, iron 18 mcg - plus alot of the B Vitamins

Plus B complex Vitamin which has more folic acid, Biotin (yea helps with loosing hair) more vit B 12 and more b vitamins

Plus chewable iron 29 mcg a day

B12 sublingual 1000 twice a week

so far my labs look great. good luck. No worries your labs are ok.

I LEARNED so much reading your post! Thanks for sharing your knowledge. Good stuff!

Amanda