Too much iron inflames your body & causes disease

Ever heard of The Fenton Reaction?

It’s when iron – essential for haemoglobin production, our oxygen carrying red blood cells – creates oxidative stress.

Oxidative stress is an imbalance between disease-causing free radicals and disease-fighting antioxidants. It can lead to premature ageing and contribute to chronic diseases like cancer, heart disease and diabetes.

While some oxidative stress is a normal biproduct of cell energy production, too much iron in your body increases the amount significantly.

Excess iron could come from...

• Excessive supplementation

• Excessive consumption e.g. red meat

• Genetics e.g. a weakness in iron absorption and/or iron clearing from the cells, or an upregulation of the NOX gen

• Alcohol, which increases absorption

• Fortified processed food

• Hepatitis

• Cooking in cast iron

According to studies like the Framingham Heart Study, more people have excess iron rather than a deficiency.

But did you know that free iron appears to awaken dormant pathogenic microbes in your body? This means excess iron could also contribute to chronic inflammatory disease, including by the production of LPS, a harmful and inflammatory biproduct of such microbes.

When it comes to iron, consider this…

• Be cautious with supplementation

• Understand your genetic strengths and weaknesses so you can take appropriate remedial action - I do this in my practic

• Get a full iron panel

• If you need to reduce your iron levels quickly, consider donating blood

• Green tea and rosemary can reduce iron absorption

• Curcumin acts as an iron binder

• Astaxanthin reduces iron-induced oxidative damage

• Always eat a balanced diet – a wide variety of veggies, fruit and other fibrous foods; good and not inflammatory fats; and natural protein, but not in excess.