When people hear the word ‘anaemia’, they instantly think ‘iron-deficiency anaemia’ and think that’s the only type. However, there are 7 different types of anaemia.  They are:

  • Haemolytic anaemia
  • Sickle cell anaemia
  • Pernicious anaemia
  • Fanconi anaemia
  • Iron deficiency anaemia
  • Thalassaemia
  • Aplastic anaemia

We are familiar with iron-deficiency anaemia because this condition is very common in women. There are roughly 40% of women under the age of 34 who suffer from iron deficiency anaemia. In the UK, 1 out of 10 women will be diagnosed with this type of anaemia at one point in their life. This is a worrying matter for all women. Whether you need energy to raise your kids and get through the day or a student that needs the energy to get through all those essays – iron deficiency affects us all. The main symptoms are fatigue, fainting spells, breathlessness, pale appearance and hair loss. A lot of us only decide to book a GP appointment after our hair starts falling out. Hair loss is a depressing moment for all females. Our society believes the beauty of a woman is her hair. The increasing percentage of women suffering from this condition will increase the demand for good iron supplements.

The popular iron supplements that are prescribed are ferrous sulphate and ferrous fumarate. The common iron supplements that can be purchased over the counter are feroglobin and spatone. However, ferrous sulphate and fumarate have one vexatious side effect….constipation! Even though this might seem like a trivial side effect for a medication, one of the major reasons why women stop taking their iron tablets is because of this side effect. Also some patients have reported that they do not feel much difference taking ferrous sulphate and ferrous fumarate. Furthermore, few patients might also discontinue their medication because it is not suitable for vegetarians. Majority of iron tablets contain gelatine and patients who are vegetarians or from specific faith groups do not feel comfortable in taking these pills because its goes against what they believe in.

Sytron is the best medication for iron deficiency. It’s in a liquid form and comes in a large bottle. Sytron was once only attained through a prescription, however now it can be purchased in some selected pharmacies for £8. It works fairly quickly and it has a nice taste to it. The big advantage to this medication is…wait for it…NO CONSTIPATION! You won’t have to worry about eating those extra fibres to get your bowels moving. When I bought my first bottle, the dispenser advised me about Sytron. She told me she suffered from iron-deficiency anaemia and her iron level was so low that she had to have a blood transfusion. She was prescribed Sytron when she was an inpatient and thought Sytron worked for her. Sytron is a worth a try but before you purchase, make sure you check the ingredients and double check with either your GP/pharmacist. It might contain an ingredient that you are sensitive to. Like all medications, Sytron has side effects too. It might cause nausea or diarrhoea. But overall it is a good iron medication which is unlikely to cause any stomach-upset or discoloured teeth.

Image courtesy: wedishnutrition.com