Is Floradix iron supplement raw?

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Permalink Reply by Audrey on January 7, 2009 at 4:58pm

I drink a green smoothie every day, and I drink a green juice (spinach or kale or cabbage + lemon + apples + carrots + pears + pomegranate seeds etc) a few times a week. I have been doing this, being 100% raw vegan, for 6 weeks now. I still feel really weak. I can't eat more than half a head of spinach or other greens a day, I am so not hungry. I feel like sleeping all the time. I felt this way before going raw. I'm not sure how much longer I can go on this way, it may be best for me to take a short cut and eat some kind of iron supplement, however I am still researching my options.

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Permalink Reply by Audrey on January 7, 2009 at 7:19pm

Yes, I had my blood tested and the results are that I am clinically anemic:

Iron 22L (normal is 40-175 UG/DL, so I'm deficient)
Ferritin 3L (normal is 10-154 ng/mL, so I'm deficient)
RBC Count 3.57L (normal is 3.80-5.10 MILL/MCL, so I'm deficient)
Hemoglobin 9.6L (normal is 11.7-15.5 G/DL, so I'm deficient)
Hematocrit 28.6L (normal is 35.0-45.0%, so I'm deficient)
MCV 80 (normal is 80-100 FL, so I'm normal)
MCH 26.9L (normal is 27-33 PG, so I'm deficient)
MCHC 33.6 (normal is 32-36 G/DL, so I'm normal)
Platelet Count 328 (normal is 140-400 THOUS/MCL, so I'm normal)
RDW 15.3H (normal is 11.0-15.0%, so I'm too high)

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Permalink Reply by mary on January 21, 2009 at 11:21am

heehee it's just crazy how "normal" goes about where you are and which country is controling the medicine... I am almost sure, our charts are much lower.... so you are deficiant acording to your national charts... I'm not sure where are you from... but I am sure that this is not the ultimate chart to base on and decide if you lack something or not by where you live... you are a speciall individual and have your own body and reaction. so I think you should check more into the feelings of your body and maybe even foods and sleep .... just not to be 100% close on the idea that it is iron because it said so in the blood check :)
btw for women our iron drops on periods might have done the blood check on that time?
well my point is always question anything anyone tells you, but always listen to your body and yourself :)
have a nice journey
and enjoy the new feeling arising
Love
Masha

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Permalink Reply by Sai on January 7, 2009 at 5:16pm

I'm pretty sure Floradix contains bee products, so if you're a vegan, you'll want to avoid it anyway!

Nuts, watercress and parsley are good sources (but hard to eat in large amounts).

A non-raw but vegan shortcut to iron is organic blackstrap molasses. It's cheap, and seems to have very good results.

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Permalink Reply by VOID on January 8, 2009 at 7:20am

Floradix make 2 liquid iron supplements, one with honey, one without. :o)

Take care

Adam x

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Permalink Reply by Sai on January 11, 2009 at 12:36pm

Seriously? Grrr. My friend recommended Floradix to me a while back and when I checked, there were bee products in it. Didn't realise they did a vegan safe one too! Thanks for the heads-up :)

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Permalink Reply by Erin on January 7, 2009 at 6:05pm

Floradix is not raw, but it is a whole food cultured iron and very good quality. Very expensive though!! Check vitacost.com to see if they have it at a discount.

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Permalink Reply by Audrey on January 7, 2009 at 7:25pm

Thanks everybody for the ideas and comments. I think I am going to try to get Floravital (the non yeast, non honey version of Floradix) and try taking it, even though it is not raw. I have been searching for someone who was "cured" of anemia and the other ailments I have by going on a raw vegan diet, and to date, I have only heard of 1 person who claims such. I saw her tell her story in that documentary/DVD by Valya Boutenko, she says she was diagnosed with anemia, went raw, and then her blood tests came back normal, and this was over a matter of months, not like a year etc. However, I feel so weak and knocked out, especially after my period, that I don't think I can wait even a few more months, I need to do something. It is affecting my job performance too, and I can't afford to lose my job.

I have heard good testimonials about blackstrap molasses curing anemia, but I believe it is made with animal products in the processing of sugar cane. So it is not raw, they boil it, and it is not vegan. So I don't want to take it. Anybody have more detailed information on BSM?

I will post on this thread in a few months to provide on update on whether the floravital is working or not.

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Permalink Reply by Lesley Anne on January 8, 2009 at 2:04am

Hi Audrey,

I don't know the answer to your question but I've used Floradix to treat my anemia and it works wonders. It's fast and effective. When you first take it the taste is horrible, but the more you use it and build up your iron levels it actually starts to taste good. Raw or not I highly recommend it, worth every penny.

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Permalink Reply by VOID on January 8, 2009 at 7:18am

Very few supplements are 'raw'. Floradix is not raw, nor is it good for anaemia since it contains a very low amount of iron.

If you want to consume a raw iron supplement you would be best off consuming either massive massive massive amounts of green juices make from dark green leafy veg, (eg. 1-2 litres/day perhaps even in place of water). As well as getting lots of greens from your diet. I typically get upto 30mg per day of iron in my diet, and tonnes of vitamin C, which is important for making iron more bioavailable. I dont conumse any juices or supplements of any kind. So if you ate a diet which consumed about 30mg of iron per day, and consumed green juices on top of that it might be possible for you to overcome the anaemia without supplementing. You could use something like nutritiondata.com or cronometer to plan your diet to make sure you get enough iron in. This would be the best bet if you can afford this tbh.

If you want a cheaper way of doing this, just make sure you get 30mg of iron in your diet by planning it well, and either giving that a go, or as well as that, taking either a dried greens powder that is iron rich and just consume lots of it, or you could consume a regular supplement. I often recommend metagenics to my clients if they arent interested in green juicing or cant afford it. You can get a product from them called "hemagenics" which contains 29mg of iron in the form of glycinate or picolinate (i forget). Its extremely well absorbed so you could just I often suggest just taking 2x29mg/day for 2 months.

It would be worth your while getting an your iron levels and your full blood count done again after this. If your levels are within the healthy range by this point, you could just continue at a maintanence dose of 29mg/day for another month or 2 to get you totally stable. If not, keep at 2x29mg for another 6 weeks and get your levels checked again.It would be worth getting your zinc levels checked at this point as iron supplementation often lowers zinc levels.

Take care

Adam x

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Permalink Reply by VOID on January 8, 2009 at 8:46am

It might be good for iron deficiency, but Iron deficiency anaemia, I think it would take an awful lot to make it work.

Take care

Adam x

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Permalink Reply by VOID on January 8, 2009 at 9:10am

There are, as my initial recommendations indicate; just eating tonnes of green leafy veg. in whole food form and juiced form with lots of whole fruits in the diet for vit C, as the primary option. This is the most optimal if people can afford it. Secondary option, high (30mg) intake or more of iron from whole foods, accompanied by green powders that are high in iron. A cheaper way of getting green juices in really. They are the best ways to get iron levels up. If people cant afford this, then I think supplements can be useful sometimes.

Take care

Adam x

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