Iron Overload Treatment – Hemochromatosis Symptoms And Diet

Iron Overload Causes And Treatments

While a number of people the world over are always suggested to have a healthy intake of iron, too much iron in ones body can do more damage than good to the system. An overload of iron in the body can occur after many years of the body absorbing an abundance of iron, which tends to build up in organ tissues like the heart and liver. If the condition remains undiagnosed, it can lead to a potentially life threatening condition known as hemochromatosis. In the United States of America alone, almost 1 million people suffer from this condition. While most of these cases are rooted in genetics and heredity, quite a large number of them are contributed to by complications from blood disorders, chronic hepatitis, chronic transfusion therapy or even an excessive intake of iron. While there are no distinct symptoms that may indicate an iron overload, a few of the other noticeable symptoms of the condition include weight loss, fatigue, weakness, joint pain and abdominal pain. Studies have shown that the condition tends to affect men more than women at a ratio of 2:1. The condition also becomes more apparent around the age of 40 in men and by the age of 50, when it comes to women. Advanced stages of the condition could also greatly impact and trigger other conditions such as abnormal liver function, diabetes, glucose intolerance, liver cancer, heart failure, liver cirrhosis and even a very prominent gray or bronze pigmentation of the skin. The condition itself can be greatly aggravated by excessive alcohol consumption, Vitamin C intake, infections and other environmental factors.

As with most other conditions, one of the best ways to treat it naturally is to abide by a strict and healthy diet. While it is essential that you visit your licensed doctor and stringently follow any recommended medication, a healthy diet will help significantly reduce the amount of time taken to recover. First off, you should avoid any iron supplements, including multivitamins that contain iron. Since vitamin C helps increase the human body’s ability to absorb iron, it is essential that you stay away from it as well. A high intake of foods like beans, rice, nuts and grain is highly recommended as they do not contain any non-heme irons. One should also stay away from any food that contains sugar, as sugar greatly stimulates iron absorption in the human body. Foods rich in fiber content, eggs and supplemental calcium will help significantly in reducing the iron content of the body.