Should/Do Bodybuilders Take Extra Iron Because of Anabolics?

[Serotonin101]

This is when therapeutic phlebotomy becomes tricky. Doctors often see a bodybuilder who is utilizing AAS and sees the RBC, hematocrit, hemoglobin all elevated above 'normal' ranges and immediately tells the patient to go donate or sets up a therapeutic phlebotomy. But, if iron, ferritin are all fine and perfect in range, over phlebotomising would or could certainly cause anemia and unwanted symptoms.

Late to the party but yes 100%. I noticed it when blood work showed low normal iron and high hematocrit and rbc. Basically I was overdonating blood. When giving blood, they don't test for iron so their anemia testing is a bit misleading as one can have low iron and still be in range for hemoglobin to donate. I also have an allele for hemochromatosis meaning I generally have high normal iron levels so I was really nuking my levels with the frequent blood donations.

[kriegernindo]

Late to the party but yes 100%. I noticed it when blood work showed low normal iron and high hematocrit and rbc. Basically I was overdonating blood. When giving blood, they don't test for iron so their anemia testing is a bit misleading as one can have low iron and still be in range for hemoglobin to donate. I also have an allele for hemochromatosis meaning I generally have high normal iron levels so I was really nuking my levels with the frequent blood donations.

Did you have any symptoms like shortness of breath or fatigue?

[AlphaMale]

There’s no need for any healthy adult male to take iron supplements, even on cycle.

I’ve tried doing that before and iron overdose will creep up on you quietly and can even mimic symptoms of anemia.

In short…no…do not use iron supplements without a doctor’s recommendation first.

[kriegernindo]

There’s no need for any healthy adult male to take iron supplements, even on cycle.

I’ve tried doing that before and iron overdose will creep up on you quietly and can even mimic symptoms of anemia.

In short…no…do not use iron supplements without a doctor’s recommendation first.

What kind of effects did you experience?

Iron overdose is actually rare and even the fda says the max daily limit is 5mg/kg bodyweight PER DAY. And the fatal/toxic dose of iron is actually 20-35mg/kG bodyweight. To put that into perspective, a 200 pound male would have to take roughly 1800 mg of iron within 24 hours to be in life threatening danger. Only someone trying to commit suicide would do this.


So unless you have the extremely rare genetic disease called hemochromatosis, iron overload isn't an issue if taking say 25 mg of iron bisglycinate per day.

Also the body has a protective mechanism against too much iron, its a compound the liver makes called hepcidin. This naturally rises in those who regularly consume more iron than their body needs and it blocks the uptake of iron completely. Those with the genetic condition, hemochromatosis i mentioned, do not produce hepcidin for some reason, and therefore can succumb to iron overload even with a tiny dose or even no supplementation at all. This is extremely rare.

I personally have noticed a PROFOUND difference since I started taking iron bisglycinate daily.

I developed microcytic anemia that I got from repeated self-phlebotomies (i was under the false impression my blood was too thick) and two blood donations when I was already borderline anemia going in.

So your first sentence is a bit interesting. Of course no "healthy adult male" may need to take iron, but that phrase is relative.

There are studies showing how a normal dose of daily iron has benefited males and females who lived chronic fatigue. I believe 50% of them noted a significant increase in energy and drive to do things.

Also with all the modern pollutants in our environment and iron chelators the levels of iron in our body are lower than our ancestors.

Do not assume that your typical muscle meats (steaks, chicken, ground beef, turkey, fish, etc) have adequate amounts of iron. The soil is already depleted and if you have ever seen how commercial cows are fed (through a mile long trough filled with gmo corn slop and other dead animals ground up) then you will know that their iron stores are on the low side.

Studies also show that just in the last 20 years, our mineral content ACROSS the board in our produce has decreased by a whopping 33%. Just in the last 20 years. Over farming is a real thing.

I don't believe in climate change the way the media talks about it, but I do believe in soil depletion as this can be accurately and precisely measured.

[Massimo1]

When I finished my cycle in August and had my blood test in Sept, my iron was low, so my doc put me on an effervescent iron supplement, which has brought it up into the normal range. Her opinion and that of second doc (who is very knowledgeable and who I really trust) I asked was that it was due to steroids.

[steelpreacher]

This is interesting. My Irons been low normal for years and I always thought it was from poor absorption. I dont ever donate blood either.

[Kluso]

I just looked at my bloodwork and they haven’t even been checking my iron or ferritin. Shit. I have to take so many stims during the day it’s not funny anymore. I no joke just slept the last 36 hour out of 40. Fell asleep on couch after work around 6pm and got up only to pee and eat and go to my bed when wife got home from work and back to couch to sleep son Saturday. And slept all day Saturday. Do this every weekend. Lol. I think it’s mainly due to only getting about 5hours of sleep on weekdays. I have to take a bunch of supps to sleep well also because of all the stims I have to take during the day. It’s gotten bad. But finally figured out a way to get a decent night sleep that I monitor with my Oura Ring. I rarely get deep sleep though. Luck if I get 30min of deep sleep. I have to get up at 4am to go to gym before work cause that’s only time I can go. But I do wonder about my iron now. When I started taking B12 my workouts got much better and I didn’t feel like death after my workouts anymore. But you mentioned link between B12 and iron. So need to look at that. I don’t give blood on the regular but did a few years back. Might have been a factor now that I think about it. I would imagine the gut bacteria that uses iron would die and replenish stores though. I take a lot of probiotics and gut has been good for most part. I have to add fiber on cycle but that’s it. Definitely going to get iron and ferritin checked on next blood work. I do believe my multivitamin does have some iron in it.

[Rot-Iron66]

Doesnt iron thicken the blood, raise hematocrit, etc?

Something a gear-using BB should steer clear from doing...

[Rebornlite]

My Dr told me that supplementing iron , b12 , folate, protein will lead to higher rbc count and higher hemoglobin. Your bone marrow and stem cells use these for rbc/hemoglobin production.


I specifically take a multi vitamin without iron and now stay clear from B12. My iron levels are sufficient with all of the meat and venison I eat that are iron rich.

Just my .02