the more i look into this, the less concerned i am about it.
this is a different reference range:
The normal range for ferritin in your blood serum is:
20 to 250 ng/mL for adult males
10 to 120 ng/mL for adult females, 18 to 39 years
12 to 263 ng/mL for females, 40 years and older
25 to 200 ng/mL for newborns
200 to 600 ng/mL at 1 month old
50 to 200 ng/mL at 2 to 5 months old
7 to 140 ng/mL for children 6 months to 15 years
i'm at 12 ng/ml - or 12 ug/l, same thing. i don't menstruate, so the 12 is a more appropriate lower bound than the 10.
see - it's the very lower limit, regardless. but, i was fasting.
if my body doesn't know what to do with the iron, it doesn't know what to do with the iron - and i need more warmth, not supplements.
but, i need to make sure i'm not bleeding.
and, how much does your ferritin go up and down, on average?
Serum ferritin levels in normal individuals have been reported to vary by 15% in men and 27% in women on a day-to-day basis [54], with variations of up to 62% when measured over a longer term [55].
so, if 12 is the amount measured when i'm fasting at 10 hours, it would be the absolute minimum amount. right? before i accept any sort of iron bombardment, i'm going to request another blood test, but done without fasting. if that number comes up into the 50+ range, i think i have nothing to worry about - i'm just demonstrating variability, and need more warmth than other people that are better adapted for colder climates.