- Dr. Hugh Wegwerth is like a detective, searching for the root cause of his patient’s chronic pain. One day, he stumbled upon a simple blood test called ferritin, which measures the body’s iron storage.
- After discovering that his client’s ferritin level was alarmingly high, he recommended giving blood to lower it. Within four months, her ferritin level dropped significantly, and her pain disappeared.
- Dr. Wegwerth encourages others suffering from chronic pain to consider ferritin testing and personalized functional medicine solutions.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Ferritin is a blood protein that stores iron. While iron is essential, too much of it stored as ferritin can be problematic. Very high ferritin levels can indicate iron overload, which may cause inflammation and oxidative stress throughout the body. This inflammation can damage tissues and joints, leading to the kind of chronic pain that Dr. Wegwerth's patient experienced.
Yes, therapeutic phlebotomy (the medical term for blood donation for treatment purposes) is a standard and effective way to reduce iron stores in the body. By removing blood, you directly remove iron contained in red blood cells. The body then uses stored iron (ferritin) to make new cells, thereby lowering the overall ferritin level over time, just as it did for the patient in this story.
As Dr. Wegwerth's detective work shows, checking ferritin can be a crucial step. If you have unexplained chronic pain, especially if it's accompanied by fatigue, joint pain, or abdominal discomfort, discussing a ferritin test with your healthcare provider or a functional medicine practitioner is a highly recommended action. It's a simple test that could reveal a treatable root cause.
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