You asked for easy, simple suggestions and what I'm about to give you is not that. But it sounds like he isn't interested in easy, simple changes or he'd be doing them already. So perhaps something a bit more radical is in order? It depends on the person, but I'm usually more motivated to make a big change (even a difficult one) that I'm enthusiastic about than a little one that I don't feel will yield much benefit. So, I don't know if this would work for him of course, but I just read the book How Not to Die by Michael Gregor, MD and I found it very powerfully motivating to make a radical change in my diet. (It's also available on Audible if he would prefer listening over reading.) Chapter titles are: How Not to Die of Heart Disease, How Not to Die of Diabetes, How Not to Die of High Blood Pressure, and so on. If he's not much of a reader, the author has an extensive website with tons of informative videos. You might have him start with this compilation video. Just a thought. Good luck with whatever you choose!

I did not know that. Thanks!

Nope. :( The fecal occult blood test was the only test his doctor ordered.

Hope you feel better soon, soror. I'm impressed with your self-control, wintermom! Went to a cycling class at my gym this morning. It kicked my butt, like it always does!

Thanks, I'll do so.

I'm glad you feel better! Thank you so much, I sure hope so too.

Hm, that's interesting. Ours isn't like that. Even with in-network stuff, they pay 80% of what you would be charged if you lived in some hypothetical VERY low cost-of-living place, not 80% of what people get charged where you actually live. And the weird part is: we live in a very low cost of living place! So I think this magical place that they're basing their prices on is some small town in middle America in the 1950's!

Did your doctor recommend methylcobalamin over cyanocobalamin? I'm curious for my dad, but I'll admit also for myself. My own levels were actually lower than his - can't remember exactly, somewhere around 250. I started supplementing with cyanocobalamin and it was clearly working because my level was around 1100 at my second test. But then I read that methylcobalamin is better. But then I read that methylcobalamin hasn't been studied enough to know for sure, and cyanocobalamin is perfectly fine. So confusing!

He hasn't given blood, and he doesn't drink. I will mention the temperature thing - thanks! I read that phrase "anemia of chronic disease" online but I couldn't really figure out what it meant. I'll do some more reading! I guess his digestive system is okay in that regard then, because when he got rechecked after supplementing, his levels were above normal! But he's still anemic - and I guess that would have improved as well if the B12 was the issue. Thank you for explaining this!

Thank you all so much for the replies! I will try to answer all the questions. He's 69 years old. He did do a series of phlebotomies when he was first diagnosed with hemochromatosis (can't remember exactly, somewhere between 7 and 10 years ago), and I think that went on for between one and two years. During that time, they had him restricting his dietary intake of iron, but he hasn't been doing that since then, so as far as I know, his iron intake is normal. But I will ask him about that to be sure. I think that the doctor thinks his fatigue and weakness is due to the other problems he has, and not the anemia (and he might be right, I don't know, I'm just upset that he's not interested in looking for a cause for this anemia!). My poor dad has been hit with so many problems recently. He's had depression and anxiety for years now, and that has worsened. And he was recently diagnosed with COPD, though they're not sure of the cause of it yet (he had a chest CT and some kind of respiratory test this week, and will get the results next week.) I mentioned the gastric problems already, and he also has eye problems (though I doubt that's related to his weakness and fatigue). He had a pretty bad scare when his GP thought he might have Parkinson's, though fortunately a neurologist ruled that out. He's had a rough go lately. Displace, thank you for that chart! From what I've read, I agree with your GP Heigh Ho, that B12 should be 500 minimum. I advised him to start supplementing with a sublingual tablet, and he has done so. So perhaps that will help him feel a little better. But I guess if he actually had autoimmune anemia (macrocytic anemia, pernicious anemia? it seems to have so many names!) that it would have been even lower than that? (not sure!) I hope that your daughter is okay. My dad's dad had lymphoma, so if there is a genetic tendency, then that is a possibility.

This doctor is a hematologist, just not a very good one, apparently. My poor dad already has to do so much driving to see specialists. He has so many issues going on right now. :crying: But I will try to talk him into it. I think it's been 7 years since he had a colonoscopy. Thank you! Thanks!

You're a good friend. :grouphug: (And I'd call that quite good enough too!)

I hope you can help me to help my dad. His ferritin, red blood cell count, hemoglobin, and hematocrit are all low, and he feels pretty bad: weak, fatigued, constant "brain fog". (also, his MCH is high, in case that means anything.). His doctor ordered a fecal occult blood test to see if he is bleeding somewhere in his digestive tract. It was negative. (My dad does have some digestive tract issues: fairly severe acid reflux and diverticulosis.) This doctor apparently has no other ideas what could be causing this, and no interest in helping my dad further. (Small town with lazy, incompetent doctors - but I'll try not to rant.). He simply told my dad that it was nothing to worry about, because his ferritin and RBC are staying steady (but staying steady at well below normal levels!). He also told him not to take an iron supplement since he has hemochromatosis. I think it's odd that someone with hemochromatosis could become anemic, but apparently it's possible! What other causes would a competent doctor look for? The only other cause I know of is pernicious anemia (macrocytic anemia) but his B12 levels weren't that low: 470. Any other ideas?

Everything that medical insurance companies say is BS. Our insurance company claims "we pay 80%, you pay 20%". But what they mean is "we'll pay 80% of what we feel like paying, which will be roughly 40% of what you were charged."

Yeah, sugar has a huge impact on me as well. Lately I've been able to fully satisfy my sweet tooth with fruit, and it's been really nice! Nice job on the weightlifting! Hope you feel better soon! I've had a great week so far (knock on wood!). No migraines Monday or Tuesday, so I had great workouts both days: HIIT on the stepmill on Monday, weights on Tuesday. I'm planning on cardio again today (steady state rather than HIIT). No migraine so far today either -- hope that holds!

I've been a bit of a slacker lately, and I really have to kick it into high gear this week. Can someone give me the kick in the rear that I need to get going? :D Hit me with your best motivation techniques!

Scoutermom, congratulations on the success of your first week on the job! It sounds like you are doing great! :hurray:

I'm so sorry. :grouphug:

Thank you! :001_smile: :hurray: Oh no, sorry about your toe! I hope it heals quickly. And I'm very sorry about your weight loss frustrations. :grouphug: That is so disheartening. I'm hesitant to say anything about anyone else's food intake, but since you posted a list, does that mean you're looking for feedback?

Laurie, I'm so glad that your son and his fiancé are alright!

Thanks! Yeah, I thought that it's at least worth doing the experiment to see how my body responds to more plant foods. So far, so good!

I'm so sorry. :grouphug:

Thank you! That is really strange that your doctor didn't recognize that it was a well known side-effect from your medication! I'm glad you felt better once you could get off the medication. Welcome back, and I hope your knee and ankle feel better soon!

Well, this has been a big week for me with regards to health stuff. I made a lot of changes. I found out that people with chronic migraine should not consume caffeine, and I was drinking lots: 3 cups of coffee in the morning, 3 glasses of iced tea throughout the day. So I've been tapering off. I also found out that I shouldn't be using painkillers more than twice a week, because if you do, you can give yourself "medication overuse headaches". The frustrating thing about this is that I had asked two different doctors how many times per week it is safe for me to medicate, and I didn't get a straight answer from either one of them. But at least I know now. Thanks to soror and mom2samlibby I discovered that my B-12 levels are very low, despite being within "normal" range by medical standards, so I started supplementing. Within two days of starting to supplement I felt so much better! I think that a lot of the problems that I've had over the last three years were because of that. For three years now I have felt like something was wrong with me that no doctor had diagnosed. Different specialists were helping me with different symptoms, but I felt like there was a bigger picture that was being missed. This may have been it. I feel like I've been handed a miracle! So thank you, soror, thank you so much! I need to thank mom2samlibby as well (I don't think she participates in this thread). I saw a new doctor this week, and in one regard she really irritated me. She completely dismissed my concern about my B12 levels and said I need to see a therapist for stress and depression. I know what depression is, because I've had it before, and I have very close family members who have it. I am not depressed. But, yes, I will admit that three years of almost daily migraines and deteriorating health was pretty stressful! But I don't need therapy for the effects of the stress, I need treatment for the source of the stress! It's not that I'm opposed to therapy or feel any stigma about mental health issues. Three of my very dearest closest most loved family members have mental health issues. It's just that I know my problem is a physical one in this particular case, not a mental one. Anyway, though, one thing I appreciated was that she very strongly recommended that I stop taking HRT. It was an attempt to address the migraines, but she's convinced that it's more likely making them worse. Given the blood clot and cancer risks from hormone pills, I think she's right and it's wise for me to stop taking them. I'm also backing off on my migraine prevention drug and I'm going to try botox instead. The side effects of this drug have become too unpleasant for the amount of help that it's giving me. AND, last but not least, I'm moving from paleo toward the "plant-based" end of the diet spectrum. Not planning on going strictly vegan or anything, but I do want to get more of my nutrition from plant sources and less from animal sources. I am at extremely high risk for osteoporosis because not only do I have all of the usual risk factors but I also had an undiagnosed Vitamin D deficiency that probably went on for 12 to 15 years. I started doing some research on the topic and how it relates to nutrition and what I learned really shocked me. Calcium supplements and milk not only don't help, they actually seem to do more harm than good. The populations with the lowest rates of osteoporosis are the ones that eat lots of beans, legumes, fruits, and vegetables. So that's what I'm going to do! Whew, okay, that was quite the mouthful. If anyone actually read all of that, thank you for your patience! Oh, and I just realized, I didn't even talk about exercise! :lol: Nothing new to report there, I've had a pretty typical week with my activity level. Planning to go to a cycling class with my husband at noon today since he's off work. That should be fun - we've never done it together before.

Congratulations and happy birthday!