should i add an iron supplement?

I was just diagnosed with U.C. last week. I had originally gone to my doctor for the symptom of blood and mucus with bowel movement. She ordered some bloodwork to check for anemia and my levels were normal. I then went to a specialist who ordered a colonoscopy asap. This was now a month ago and my bleeding has only worsened since. I'm beginning to feel weaker, i'm paler, and have had dizziness. The specialist put me on Lialda just over a week ago and haven't had any change in my symptoms, he then added entocort which I will start tomorrow. I'm now wondering if I should add an iron supplement to combat the the now extensive bleeding, or at the very least up my protein and start a daily mulivitimin.  To those of you on an iron supplement did you add this on your own, or did your doctor suggest it?

I would suggest you talk to your doctor before starting an iron supplement. Iron can be bad if you get too much of it. I would maybe ask your doctor to re-test you for anemia. A multivitamin with iron should be okay, if it doesn't make you have an upset stomach (it does for some people, but I'm okay with it).

Iron supplements can be hard on the digestion. I agree with others: check with your doctor before you do anything. If you're anemic, iron IVs are the way to go, bypassing the digestive system.

No, do not add iron until a doctor advises. Too much iron causes other problems, like constipation. Since you are new to UC I will share with you that it took 2 years of bleeding everyday for me to reach anemia and loss of B-12. You have a lot of stores and since you will most likely continue eating you will continue to add to these. I know seeing blood is scary and it always looks like we are losing pints of it but most of the time just a little blood will turn the bowl red.

Sue

iron tablets will excerbate inflammation of the colon.

catch 22... you need it, but its not good for the colon.
my doc sends me to the hospital for iron infusions when i become aneamic.
it is a 6 hour experience, but worth it cuz it gives you enough iron to last 6 months to a year with our condition.
and i am one of those UC'ers that bleeds profusely every time i go to the toilet.
so i lose a lot of blood.
and the infusions work quick. all aneamic type symptoms are gone in like 2-3 days.

I've been taking a b12/iron/copper supplement called siderfol - just 1 a day. I haven't noticed any bad effects from it. I do get the impression I feel stronger and less tired on them and I think my eyes begin to look a little darker if I don't take any for a while.

I didn't realise the potential for adverse effects with UC. I'll definately think about going off them now.

Thank you for the advice. I had no idea that an iron supplement could cause such problems. Instead I've been increasing the amount of protein I've been eating, and I've also added V-8 fruit juice whenever i can, which provides a lot of vitimins per glass, iron included. Also plain old v-8 is full of fiber thats easy to digest. I get horrible pain when I eat raw vegies and its just killing me that I can't eat salads everyday this summer, so I thought this would be an ok replacement.

As for the entocort which I just started today, I could add a calcium supplement or I believe that there are daily multivitimins that are formulated for women with extra calcium, so maybe that would be a good route. (two birds one stone) I've been reading that people with U.C. have problems with dairy. I've never been lactose intollerent, but I've started to limit my dairy products to see if it would help, although I haven't seen a result. It's all so confusing. Yikes.