My Personal Journey

My wife and I were pregnant with our first child, and we were advised to undertake routine genetic testing. The results revealed that I was low in iron. This puzzled me, as I ate meat and consumed what I thought to be a ‘healthy diet’. I had none of the tell-tale symptoms of low iron. I conducted further testing and even went on to see a gastroenterologist.

The gastroenterologist kept telling me that it was quite unusual for someone my age to have such low iron and flagged a few potential causes—including cancer—and advised me to undergo more diagnostic testing. I wasn’t convinced, however, and tried to explain to him that endurance athletes commonly have low iron due to foot-strike hemolysis. He wasn’t interested in hearing any of this. I even presented studies to prove endurance athletes lose iron through running.

I went to see a sports medicine doctor, hoping to draw upon their closer knowledge of the needs of endurance athletes, and I’m glad to say that this visit changed my life. So much so, in fact, it set me on a new path and has led me to where I am today. At my initial consultation with the sports medicine doctor, I was asked many questions and he took a thorough history. He told me it was completely normal for someone running the amount I was per week to experience low iron, and that he would contact the gastroenterologist and let him know. The sports medicine doctor asked me, “How many times are you eating red meat a week?” I replied, “Once or twice a week. Isn’t red meat bad for you?” The doctor said, “Read the book ‘A Fat Lot of Good’, by Dr Peter Brukner.” I walked out, followed his advice, and haven’t looked back.