Hemochromatosis and Autoimmune Conditions

Hi Serendipity,

Here is the relevant section of The Merck Manual about biting mites:

There are multiple kinds of biting mites. Chiggers are probably the most common. Chiggers are mite larvae that are ubiquitous outdoors except in arid regions; they bite, feed in the skin, then fall off. Outside the US, chiggers may carry Rickettsia tsutsugamushi (see Scrub Typhus). They do not burrow into the skin, but because they are small, they are not readily seen on the skin surface.

Common mite species that bite and burrow into the skin include Sarcoptes scabiei, which causes scabies (see Scabies), and Demodex mites, which cause a scabies-like dermatitis (sometimes referred to as mange).

Dermatitis is caused by mites that occasionally bite humans but are ordinarily ectoparasites of birds, rodents, or pets and by mites associated with plant materials or stored food or feed.

Bird mites may bite people who handle live poultry or pet birds or who have birds' nests on their homes.
Rodent mites from cats, dogs (especially puppies), and rabbits may bite people.
Swine mange mites (S. scabiei var suis) from pig farms or pet pigs may also bite humans.
The straw itch mite (Pyemotes tritici) is often associated with seeds, straw, hay, and other plant material; it is a parasite of soft-bodied insects that are or have been present in such materials. These mites often bite people who handle the infested items. Granary workers, people who handle grass seeds or grass hay, and people who make dried plant arrangements are most at risk.
Allergic dermatitis or grocer's itch is caused by several species of mites associated with stored grain products, cheese, and other foods. These mites do not bite but cause allergic dermatitis because people become sensitized to allergens on the mites or their waste products.

House dust mites do not bite but feed on sloughed skin cells in pillows and mattresses and on floors (especially on carpets). They are significant because many people develop pulmonary hypersensitivity to allergens in the exoskeletons and feces of house dust mites.

Symptoms and Signs
Most bites cause some version of pruritic dermatitis; pruritus due to chigger bites is especially intense.

Diagnosis
Clinical evaluation
Diagnosis of nonburrowing mite bites is presumptive based on the patient's history (eg, living, working, and recreational environments) and physical examination. The mites themselves are rarely found because they fall off after biting, the skin reaction is usually delayed, and most patients seek a physician's assistance only after several days. Lesions caused by different mites are usually indistinguishable and may superficially resemble other skin conditions (eg, other insect bites, contact dermatitis, folliculitis).

Diagnosis of burrowing mites can often be made presumptively based on history and a scabies-like pattern of skin lesions. If the diagnosis is unclear or if treatment is ineffective, the diagnosis can be confirmed by skin biopsy.

Treatment
Topical corticosteroids or oral antihistamines
Antimicrobial therapy for burrowing mites
For treatment of scabies, see Treatment
Treatment of nonburrowing mite bites is symptomatic. Topical corticosteroids or oral antihistamines are used as needed to control pruritus until the hypersensitivity reaction resolves. Through discussion of possible sources, the physician can help patients avoid repeated exposure to mites. For Demodex bites, veterinary consultation is needed.

Key Points
Mites that bite include chiggers (too small to see) and occasionally mites that are ectoparasites of birds, rodents, or pets and mites associated with plant materials or stored food or feed.
Mites that bite and burrow include Sarcoptes scabiei, which causes scabies, and Demodex mites, which cause a scabies-like dermatitis.

Mites that bite usually cause pruritic dermatitis.
Diagnose patients by history and, for burrowing mites, scabies-like pattern of skin lesions.

Treat symptoms (eg, topical corticosteroids or oral antihistamines for itching) and treat burrowing mite bites with antimicrobial therapy.

I think the key message is that it often is difficult to diagnose the critter that produces the symptoms (if it is one at all). If symptoms persist one way to rule out mites is to have a dermatologist do a biopsy. I don't think that you need this at this stage as there are plenty of other avenues to explore first. But neem oil seems a good start for me too, a biopsy being kind of a last resort if things don't clear up long term.

Hope you will get better soon.
 
nicklebleu said:
I think the key message is that it often is difficult to diagnose the critter that produces the symptoms (if it is one at all). If symptoms persist one way to rule out mites is to have a dermatologist do a biopsy. I don't think that you need this at this stage as there are plenty of other avenues to explore first. But neem oil seems a good start for me too, a biopsy being kind of a last resort if things don't clear up long term.

Hope you will get better soon.

Yeah. I'd be slathering neem oil or sulfur mixed with coconut oil or dog flea and tick shampoo on me about now.
 
truth seeker said:
Thanks for your reply and clarification. I was also thinking about eczema for some reason when you were describing the rash. If it's not too much trouble, can you post a picture of it? Apologies if you have and I've missed it.
I tried to take some pictures but either my camera is lousy or I don't know how to use it, because they ended up quite fuzzy and thus useless. Also, like nicklebleu said:

nicklebleu said:
I think the key message is that it often is difficult to diagnose the critter that produces the symptoms (if it is one at all).
So, there wouldn't be much point in doing that anyway, especially since not even the specialist was able to tell exactly what it was.

Laura said:
nicklebleu said:
I think the key message is that it often is difficult to diagnose the critter that produces the symptoms (if it is one at all). If symptoms persist one way to rule out mites is to have a dermatologist do a biopsy. I don't think that you need this at this stage as there are plenty of other avenues to explore first. But neem oil seems a good start for me too, a biopsy being kind of a last resort if things don't clear up long term.

Hope you will get better soon.

Yeah. I'd be slathering neem oil or sulfur mixed with coconut oil or dog flea and tick shampoo on me about now.
Thank you both, I agree.

nicklebleu, I assume you mean the more invasive type of biopsy, unlike the scrapping test that I had done on me before.

They were all out of neem oil at two places I went yesterday, but I'll check with a few more pharmacies.

Laura, I presume that by sulfur you mean DMSO or MSM? I don't have any of that at home, but I'm gonna check with my local pharmacies. If they don't have that specifically, do you know if some other type of sulfur based cream or product would be an option?
 
Serendipity said:
Laura, I presume that by sulfur you mean DMSO or MSM? I don't have any of that at home, but I'm gonna check with my local pharmacies. If they don't have that specifically, do you know if some other type of sulfur based cream or product would be an option?

No, if I had meant DMSO or MSM, I would have said so; I meant plain, yellow sulfur.

http://www.amazon.com/Ground-Yellow-Brimstone-Approved-Feedstock/dp/B00K3RBYJQ/ref=sr_1_2?s=hpc&ie=UTF8&qid=1400433442&sr=1-2&keywords=sulfur+powder

http://www.amazon.com/Humco-Sulfur-Powder-Sublimed-Oz/dp/B001V9OWNU/ref=sr_1_1?s=hpc&ie=UTF8&qid=1400433442&sr=1-1&keywords=sulfur+powder

Always useful to have on hand. Just make a paste with coconut oil... voila!
 
Laura said:
Serendipity said:
Laura, I presume that by sulfur you mean DMSO or MSM? I don't have any of that at home, but I'm gonna check with my local pharmacies. If they don't have that specifically, do you know if some other type of sulfur based cream or product would be an option?

No, if I had meant DMSO or MSM, I would have said so; I meant plain, yellow sulfur.

http://www.amazon.com/Ground-Yellow-Brimstone-Approved-Feedstock/dp/B00K3RBYJQ/ref=sr_1_2?s=hpc&ie=UTF8&qid=1400433442&sr=1-2&keywords=sulfur+powder

http://www.amazon.com/Humco-Sulfur-Powder-Sublimed-Oz/dp/B001V9OWNU/ref=sr_1_1?s=hpc&ie=UTF8&qid=1400433442&sr=1-1&keywords=sulfur+powder

Always useful to have on hand. Just make a paste with coconut oil... voila!

Got it! Thanks.
 
Serendipity said:
nicklebleu, I assume you mean the more invasive type of biopsy, unlike the scrapping test that I had done on me before.

Yep - it would mean cutting a small piece of skin out completely - it's usually done as a punch biopsy (where a little tube with very sharp edges is punched through the skin and the bit that comes out is sent to a pathologist who processes it and looks at it under a microscope).

But as stated before, this is really a last-ditch thing ...
 
I've been applying the mixture of neem and coconut oil for almost 2 weeks now, and there are no noticeable effects. In fact, the condition of my skin has only worsen since last time I wrote. I also made additional observation, and I'm even more perplexed then ever. The number of bumps (they look similar to mosquito bites) on my arms and legs has more then dubbled. Situation of skin on my torso remained the same (reminds me of rash, and also similar to bumps on my extremities but 2-3 times smaller). They are mostly not fading away, but the itching happens only occasionally, coinciding with how I feel. For example, when I slept less then 5 hours two times in a row, the next day situation worsened. It was feeling as if there's some irritant in my circulation, then the itching would start, bumps become more pronounced, my skin dry, with some extremely dry spots, especially in legs.

Then, when I scratch those dry areas, there are some especially white round dots or grains made of attached dead skin. When that white, dry dead skin stuff is removed 2 things often happen. On areas covered with hair, (mostly on my thighs) when I scratch of the white stuff in 80% cases I find a new hair that grew out from the inside. Sometimes it's even spirally packed before my scratching sets it free. On my arms and hips that doesn't happen, but there are already hair present in the middle of some bumps. The other thing that happens is that when I scratch of the outer layer of the skin that has gone dry, in most of the cases it looks like open wound, that reminds of some insect bite, because in the middle there's a hole, almost like a puncture mark, and it sometimes bleeds. Yesterday, when I did the above on a dry patch above my knee, one dry bump began bleeding and I noticed 3 long hairs growing out from that round spot.

I have noticed that bumps are going through the phases. First they look like similar to mosquito bites, then (especially on legs and somewhat on arms) they dry out and (some days) start to itch, then they literally open up (perhaps pores?) and sometimes bleed but almost always appear as an open little wound or a bite mark, and also mostly on thighs the new hair is growing from that that used to be bumps and now is dry, itchy, skin cover, made of dead skin. Could it be related to pores, or whatever are called the openings from where the hair grows on the skin?

It's very disconcerting and weird. I did a quick search on the net but didn't find anything similar, perhaps someone here will have some idea what it might be about. My only guess is some kind of hormonal imbalance? I can't relate it to any 'bad' food, because I've been eating bacon, eggs, pork chops, lard and butter for over a year already, and this condition started 4-5 months ago. Maybe saturated fat? But I know better that that!

There's something my doctor told me when I showed her my blood tests that she prescribed for me to do because of my rash. She looked at my cholesterol levels and didn't comment anything until I asked her does she think if they are too high. She then said like yes but it's normal since I'm on the keto diet, as is she (at least she claims that), and that cholesterol references have been tempered with in order to sells statins, etc. But, a bit later, when she learned that I eat around 200g of fat a day, she said that it's too much and my rash could be caused by too much fat. If I'm not mistaken, the cholesterol is a precursor of many hormones, and my cholesterol levels where even higher the second time I took the blood test. Here are my cholesterol levels:

6.6.2013. Cholesterol 6.8mmol/L (<5.0) LDL 4.8mmol/L (<3.0) HDL 1.8mmol/L (>1.0)

28.4.2014. Cholesterol 9.2mmol/L (<5.0) LDL 6.9mmol/L (<3.0) HDL 2.1mmol/L (>1.0)

Tomorrow I meet with my dermatologist. Maybe she can figure it out if I describe everything like I did here.

ADDED: Maybe it would be best if a moderator splits the previous dozen or so posts into some other thread related to weird skin condition, since this discussion went off-topic, likely having little or nothing to do with hemochromatosis. But, then again who knows. I'm still not diagnosed by my hematologist, since I have to wait in line for my tests, and it's a long waiting list in my country. :/
 
It sounds like you're getting what are called ingrown hairs. Has something changed to make you grow more hair?
 
monotonic said:
It sounds like you're getting what are called ingrown hairs. Has something changed to make you grow more hair?

I checked out some pictures on the net and it doesn't look like that. I have quite many bumps all around my torso and extremities, and only some, mostly those on my thighs, have hair that grew out of them, or more precisely was buried inside the small patch of dead skin, until I scratched it out in the open. It seems to me as just a secondary symptom of perhaps some broader, yet not diagnosed ailment I might have. A thought that just popped to my mind is: maybe something caused my immune system to 'see' my hair as antigen and thus the reaction on the skin?

Nothing has changed that I know of, and I also don't know what can make you grow more hair.
 
Serendipity,

Very sorry to hear that you are not better. I was thinking about your symptoms and was wondering, if what you describe is Morgellons. I would suggest you google this disease and find out if your symptoms and the aspect of your lesions fit. A good starting point is the Morgellons Research Foundation.

Other than that I can only recommend to find a good dermatologist to try to get to the bottom of this. Unfortunately skin conditions are very hard to diagnose from afar. And maybe a biopsy might be the order if it doesn't get better soon. Have you tried steroid cream on just one area to see if it makes a difference?

Sorry for not being able to assist better!
 
Very often when the skin starts "erupting" it is related in some way to the health of the digestive tract. If your colon can't deal with the toxins in your body, they start to come out through the skin. Are you on the keto diet? If so, it may be more fat than your liver can handle. Do you use sufficient digestive aids? Have you tried coffee enemas to stimulate the detox activity of the liver? Do you take sufficient vitamin C and NAC? What about Milk Thistle?
 
I wouldn't worry about the cholesterol right now, it looks good enough. Some parameters are a bit high, but you are going through a lot of changes. I think the most important thing is to decant excess iron so your cholesterol won't oxidize.

The dermatologist might or not find a diagnosis, but his/her input would help to discard possibilities.

I went through a detox phase with rashes (specially bad at night) just recently when re-starting the diet. That is how it felt, like I was shedding toxins lodged in my fat. During the last year or so, I often ate outside and that means stuff cooked in vegetable oil which is so evil. Doing exercise consistently and sweating seemed to help, even though there was some exacerbation at the beginning. Some speculate that it takes 2 years to "clear up" transfats from your fat deposits.

Perhaps this will shed some light into this particular transformational process:

Quote Deep Nutrition: Why Your Genes Need Traditional Food by Catherine Shanahan, MD and Luke Shanahan

Aside from acting as simple mechanical insulation and cushioning, body fat generates chemicals required for sexual development and reproduction, immune defense, blood clotting, circadian rhythm, and even mood and concentration. [...]

Distorted Fats Damage Enzymes and Lead to Cellular Death

[...] The more distorted fat you eat, the more inflammation you're fighting against. Trans fat reduces your ability to metabolize the saturated and essential fatty acids that you need to be healthy, so eating trans fat can initiate a vicious cycle. The Nurses' Health Study showed that a mere two percent increase in trans fat consumption correlated with a 40 percent increase in insulin resistance and diabetes. Once you develop diabetes, your metabolism is deeply committed to converting as many calories as it can into fat. Given the power of unnatural fat to disturb metabolism, it's no wonder the advice to avoid healthy, natural fat sets us up to fail.

To successfully avoid eating oxidized fats, you must avoid all foods containing vegetable oils. [...]

High fructose corn syrup can make it practically impossible for you to normalize your weight. We've all heard that when bears need to fatten up for winter, they eat berries. It turns out that fructose sugar (in fruit, fruit juice, soda, and more) sends especially powerful fat-building signals by switching on liver enzymes for converting sugars to fat. Since most of the food you eat gets sent to the liver first, eating fructose effectively traps dietary carbohydrates in your liver and converts them to fat, preventing them from ever making it to muscle tissue where they could be burned during exercise.

So fructose-containing foods can make you pack on the pounds, but there's really no sugar that's good for you[...]

Because carbohydrates in your food are converted into sugars, a diet high in pastas, breads, and so on, is inherently pro-inflammatory as well. Worse, these starchy foods are so bereft of vitamins and other antioxidants that building a diet around them can make it hard for your body to control oxidation reactions once they start. This puts you deeper into a pro-inflammatory state.[...]

Fat Grows from Stem Cells

You've probably heard of stem cells, immature cells derived from embryos with the potential to grow replacement parts for any organ. These are the cells you've seen researchers use to grow ears on the back of mice. Many believe stem cells hold the cure for Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and a host of other currently incurable diseases, and someday they may. But if you want to reshape your body, harnessing stem cell versatility can help you achieve that goal today.

One of the most frustrating things about fat is its ability to seemingly appear from nowhere. It's really coming from stem cells. When you eat sugar, starch, and trans fat without exercising your body will churn out new fat cells like a termite queen producing eggs. When stem cells turn into fat cells and grow plumper, you grow plumper too.

One reason diets fail is that cutting back on calories without changing any other habits sends precisely the wrong message. The body presumes that the relative scarcity of food, in combination with little activity, must mean food has become so scarce you've given up looking for more. If it has the slightest chance to store surplus energy as fat, the panicked body reasons it had better do so. Under these circumstances, stem cells stand at the ready to convert themselves into more energy-storing fat cells. Frightening our stem cells into turning into fat cells is exactly the wrong thing to do. Instead, we should capitalize on the stem cell's protean nature and convince it to turn into a kind of cell we want.

Like what, you say? Like muscle, blood vessel, nerve and bone. What's even more remarkable than stem cell versatility is the fact that grown-up fat cells seem capable of changing their identity almost as readily as stem cells can. That means you don't need to starve to get rid of all that flab; it can be transformed into the healthy tissues of a brand new beautiful you.

Fat Can Transform Back into Stem Cells, and Other Types of Cells

You might find this hard to believe, but fat cells require constant attention to maintain their girth. Many people who have tried to improve their looks by having fat injected into their lips and cheeks have seen their enhancement melt away when the transplanted fat cells refused to flourish in their new locations. When researchers investigated this phenomenon, they found that not only had the once-plump cells slimmed down to fusiform slivers, some had changed into an entirely different type of cell, called a fibrocyte, the type of cell most prevalent in the tissues into which the fat cells had been injected. Apparently, fibrocytes surrounding the transplanted fat cells refused to make the introduced cells feel at home (by producing the necessary fat-sustaining hormones). Without these hormones, the receptors and enzymes that enable fat cells to do their thing—ingest sugar and fat and grow pudgy—began to shut down. Shrinking under the peer pressure of a hormonally cold shoulder, the unwelcome guests simply conformed to the rules of the neighborhood and reinvented themselves as fibrocytes.

You may be able to coerce fat cells into becoming just about anything you want. Fat tissue belongs to a class of body material called connective tissue, which collectively includes collagen, bone, muscle, blood, and associated cells. Some cell biologists now believe that one type of connective tissue cell permanently retains its ability to transform into another cell type whenever chemical signals instruct it to do so. So muscle cells can become fat cells: fat can become bone; and then a bone cell can change back to a fat cell again. This process is termed transdifferentiation. [...]

All this suggests that a fat cell on your thigh today might once have been a muscle, bone, or skin cell, living someplace else in your body. But why, you may wonder, would any cell decide to pack its bags and head to an entirely new location? It would if it received a chemical memo saying that its service in its current tissue is no longer required, and that it should head to its new assignment in the fat department.

[...] Exercise is important because it generates signals to transdifferentiate your fat.

Exercise works at least three ways: 1) It increases insulin sensitivity, so you need less insulin to get sugar out of the bloodstream. This allows your insulin levels to drop, which tells your fat cells to slow down the conversion of sugar into more fat. 2) It reduces the stress hormone cortisol. Cortisol packs fat around organs (as opposed to under the skin) where it produces lots of pro-inflammatory chemicals, which in turn tell the body to produce still more fat. And 3) Exercise makes blood sugar levels drop, and with it the potential for AGEs and the sugar-induced inflammation that blocks healthy body-building signals.

[...] This discovery that so many cellular transformations are occurring has unsettled the medical community, which must now abandon the old notion of a cell as something created to be a lifelong member of one particular cellular species. This model grossly underestimates the cell's protean nature. Just as genes change in reaction to what we eat, think, and do, cells change their internal construction too, dedifferentiating from a mature phase back into the immature, pluripotent stage of cell life. And then, from the pluripotent stage, they can be instructed to redifferentiate back into the original, or even be recruited into another type of tissue altogether.

FWIW.

How is the decanting going? I'm thinking that any detox phase you are going through is made particularly difficult with excess iron.
 
nicklebleu said:
Serendipity,

Very sorry to hear that you are not better. I was thinking about your symptoms and was wondering, if what you describe is Morgellons. I would suggest you google this disease and find out if your symptoms and the aspect of your lesions fit. A good starting point is the Morgellons Research Foundation.

Other than that I can only recommend to find a good dermatologist to try to get to the bottom of this. Unfortunately skin conditions are very hard to diagnose from afar. And maybe a biopsy might be the order if it doesn't get better soon. Have you tried steroid cream on just one area to see if it makes a difference?

Sorry for not being able to assist better!

Thanks for your concern, nicklebleu. I saw dermatologist earlier today. The Morgellons came to my mind, and I did Google it yesterday, but It's highly unlikely that's the case in my case, especially after dermatologist told me that finding hair inside dried out bump is not unusual and is likely just a result of hair not being able to push and grow outside the skin because of the bump under which it grows. So, it's no wonder why the hair comes outside only when I scratch off the dead skin from dry bump. I commented to a dermatologist that skin conditions are often very difficult to diagnose and she agreed. Because skin often reacts first and thus is among the primary and often most visible symptoms of numerous possible 'inner' diseases/conditions. I haven't tried steroid cream, but thanks for mentioning it because all information could potentially be usufull.

Laura said:
Very often when the skin starts "erupting" it is related in some way to the health of the digestive tract. If your colon can't deal with the toxins in your body, they start to come out through the skin. Are you on the keto diet? If so, it may be more fat than your liver can handle. Do you use sufficient digestive aids? Have you tried coffee enemas to stimulate the detox activity of the liver? Do you take sufficient vitamin C and NAC? What about Milk Thistle?

I've been on keto diet for about year and a half, if I'm not mistaken, and even longer on low carb diet. Since more then half a year or so, I've been eating around 170 - 220 grams of fat per day, which is more then I've been eating during the first half time that I'm was on KD, which was around 150 grams. During that first 'half time' and after the short period of keto adaptation that went pretty smooth, even though I wasn't taking any digestive acids or enzymes, I was feeling excellent. For the first time in my life I felt like I'm finally in control of my health and perhaps would never again be dependant on good old medical system that I very much dislike. I felt energized, almost all of my problems were gradually gone, including headaches and backaches, haven't been sick, not even a little, haven't had stomach problems, nor the motion sickness, nothing at all.

Only in couple of instances when I gave in to cravings (also in the first half of last year and a half), I'd get a headaches and/or stomachaces and inflammation. Eventually I learned, like many others have, that it's just not worth it, and haven't had any bad food in half a year, only coffee now and then, but never in last month. What I'm trying to say is that no major problems showed up until 4-5 months ago, and perhaps it could be due to healed leaky gut syndrome which led to increased iron absorption, which led to accumulation of ferritin. When I showed my blood tests, including ferritin level to my dermatologist, she said it's a high level and that it's a good possibility that what's happening to my skin is caused by it. I almost couldn't believe it, but she said something like "that the iron could be exiting or being excreted through my skin, or it could be the cause of the bumps/rash. Then she said it's best that hematologist take me from here on, since she can treat me better. I agreed and said that I think the proper treatment should be bloodletting and EDTA, and she nodded.

I haven't tried coffee enema, perhaps it's not even necessary, because I'm young, but I could be mistaken. I don't take NAC and Milk Thistle because I thought them to be unnecessary after I became keto adapted. I'll also mention that my blood test from 6.6. 2013. showed high levels of ketones in my urine (***) and test done 28.4.2014. showed lower levels (*), but that results might not be unreliable due to different factors involved and/or mean nothing special. I've been taking vitamin C during the first half of time that I was on keto diet, but when I read the suggestion that vitamin C shouldn't be supplemented as much or at all when on KD, and after reading the info on Hemochromatosis thread that vit C increases absorption of iron, I almost completely stopped supplementing it. Coincidentally, three days ago I took a moderate dose of 1-2 grams after I began developing a cough, and remarkably the cough stopped almost immediately, but few hours later when I went to sleep, I started experiencing heartburn, for the first time in my life, I think, well at least first time that it was that severe. For 10-15 mins I felt strong 'cold' burning sensation coming from my lower chest and travelling to upper chest and even neck. I couldn't have done pipe breathing properly and it was quite an unpleasant experience, but it passed. Don't know if it's related to vit C, but that was the only factor that was different then the other days, that I'm aware of.
 
Gaby said:
I wouldn't worry about the cholesterol right now, it looks good enough. Some parameters are a bit high, but you are going through a lot of changes. I think the most important thing is to decant excess iron so your cholesterol won't oxidize.

The dermatologist might or not find a diagnosis, but his/her input would help to discard possibilities.

I went through a detox phase with rashes (specially bad at night) just recently when re-starting the diet. That is how it felt, like I was shedding toxins lodged in my fat. During the last year or so, I often ate outside and that means stuff cooked in vegetable oil which is so evil. Doing exercise consistently and sweating seemed to help, even though there was some exacerbation at the beginning. Some speculate that it takes 2 years to "clear up" transfats from your fat deposits.

How is the decanting going? I'm thinking that any detox phase you are going through is made particularly difficult with excess iron.

Thank you for sharing your experience Gaby. You might be right about the possibility that toxins (trans fats) are being shed from my system. I don't do resistance training, I only walk, so I'll have to change that, it is an important factor that I've neglected, especially in last year or so.

I am scheduled to see my hematologist in 10 days or so. I've been told to come back with all results of the prescribed tests, but my turn for abdominal ultrasound test is in September, so I'll have to see my 'primary' doctor and ask her for an 'urgent prescription'. I didn't even try to donate blood after last time, because last time I learned they don't let people with any skin condition to donate, and I don't want to consciously cause possible harm to someone. So, until I see hematologist again, as far as I can see, only thing that I can do is EDTA protocol. My iron free minerals arrived recently, but I decided to wait until next week when I'll take another ferritin test, until I begin to use EDTA. Maybe it's a crazy idea, but I want to know did my ferritin level change, and if it has increased, I want to know how much.
 
My doctor called me yesterday and told me that he wanted to see me about the blood test that I had last week and specifically about my cholesterol.

I ask him to give me a photocopy of my blood test before seeing him.

Here are my blood test results received today :

TESTS RESULT UNITS REFERENCE INTERVAL
Cholesterol 9,43 <5,20 mmol/L
HDL 1,72 1,0 - 2,0 mmol/L
LDL 7,50 <3,5 mmol/L
Triglycerides 0,54 0,00 - 1,70 mmol/L


TESTS RESULT UNITS REFERENCE INTERVAL
Iron Bind.Cap.(TIBC) 53 umol/L 45 - 80
Ferritin 103 ng/L 24 - 336
Iron, Serum 14 umol/L 12 - 31
Iron Saturation 0,26 0,20 - 0,50


Last year:

Cholesterol 5,53 <5,20 mmol/L
HDL 1,92 1,0 - 2,0 mmol/L
LDL 3,40 <3,5 mmol/L
Triglycerides 0,47 0,00 - 1,70 mmol/L

TESTS RESULT UNITS REFERENCE INTERVAL
Iron Bind.Cap.(TIBC) 62 umol/L 45 - 80
Ferritin 24 ug/L 24 - 336
Iron, Serum 22 umol/L 12 - 31
Iron Saturation 0,35 0,20 - 0,50
 
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