Most of the daily iron will be in non-heme form, which is bound in plants or bound chemically in the regular synthetic/artificial supplements. Non-heme iron is not very bioavailable, so more than 95 % will not be absorbed. Heme iron is taken up at a significantly higher rate and will not produce side-effects like the synthetic/artificial supplements. It is also not affected by other simultaneously ingested food or drink.

1. Why Low-dose is more efficient
than High-dose
when it comes to iron

2. Restoring counts takes :me
• Restoring iron values takes a while, just like the
onset and development of iron deficiency
doesn't happen overnight. It is a ques:on of
balance where the uptake of iron needs to
match the losses.
• Natural losses include for instance loss of blood
through menstrua:on and natural intake is
based on the diet.

3. Natural dose
• The regular amount of iron we need in a mixed
diet is 12 - 18 mg in total per day.
• In healthy individuals the average iron demand is
1 mg daily for men, 1.5 - 2.5 mg daily for women
and during pregnancy 2-3 mg daily
corresponding to a total of 500 - 1 000 mg,
which will be absorbed from the daily diet.

4. Natural dose
• This means that if our intake is lacking this amount or the
losses are larger, iron deficiency will eventually develop.
• A normal adult carries 3,5 – 4 g iron (3 500 – 4 000 mg), so
a turnover of less tha 20 mg per days means a situa:onal
change will take :me.
• This is the natural state and the body is not adopted to
having the normal turnover increased many :mes.
• In normal health iron management in the body is
conserva:ve with liUle or no loss of body iron save 1-2 mg
being excreted, principally by sloughing of cells from the
gastrointes:nal tract and skin, and menstrua:on.

5. Iron absorp:on
• Most of the daily iron will be in non-heme form, which
is bound in plants or bound chemically in the regular
syntethic supplements. Non-heme iron is not very
bioavailable, so more than 95 % will not be absorbed.
• Heme iron is taken up at a significantly higher rate and
will not produce side-effects like the syntethic
supplements. It is also not affected by other
simultaneously ingested food or drink.

6. Uptake of Non-Heme iron
• 30 days of supplementa:on with 100 mg Fe++ non-heme
iron at a bio-availablity of 2 % theore:cally gives 60 mg
absorbed iron. At 4 %, which is unusual, the amount is
120 mg.
• Non-heme supplements at 100 mg Fe++ per dose regularly
have an incidence of side-effects leading to termina:on of
the therapy of around 30 %. Donors that have previous
nega:ve experiences will usually not take the supplements
at all.

7. Uptake of Heme iron
• Supplementa:on with 18 mg of heme iron for thirty days
with a bio-availability/uptake of 20 % gives 108 mg of
absorbed iron.
• Heme iron is very well tolerated and is known to have a
side-effects ra:o as placebo. This means a higher
therapy success rate.
This is why heme iron tablets with a dose of 18 mg Fe++
can compete with non-heme tablets of 100 mg Fe++
or even more.

8. More than 60 mg non-heme
stops zinc uptake
• A dose of more than 60 mg of non-heme iron per day will
block the uptake of Zinc, which is an essen:al trace
element vital for many biological func:ons and that has a
crucial role in the enzyme system in the body.
• Heme iron will not affect the uptake of Zinc.

9. Syntethic supplements in high doses
• There is a clear tendency to use non-heme iron
supplements in very large doses because many believe a
strong deficiency situa:on should be cured as quickly as
possible.
• However there is a large risk for therapy-ruining side-
effects and a normal uptake will not permit a large
change quickly.
• A steady therapy with an efficient and well tolerated iron,
such as heme iron in tablet form, is therefore always
preferable.

10. OptiFer® tablets are based on natural bovine heme iron and
will safely and efficiently keep iron counts at an optimal level
www.op:fer.interna:onal www.hemeiron.com