What are the harms of iron to the human body

Iron is an element needed by the human body. Iron itself is not toxic, but if a person consumes too much iron, they will be poisoned, which is also a great harm to the human body. The various trace elements our body needs on a normal day must be in a balanced state. Whether it is too much or too little, it is harmful to the human body. We must pay attention to it in normal times. What are the harms of iron to the human body? Let’s take a look.

Acute iron poisoning often occurs in children. When children take an overdose of solid iron supplements coated with colorful sugar tablets or syrup made from liquid iron supplements, they may develop symptoms of acute poisoning within about an hour, including upper abdominal discomfort, abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting, diarrhea and black stools, and even purple face, drowsiness or irritability, acute intestinal necrosis or perforation, and in the most serious cases, shock and death. From this we can see that it is necessary to remind parents that when children need to supplement iron or take iron preparations, they must strictly control the dosage according to the doctor's instructions and must not take it indiscriminately to prevent poisoning.

Chronic iron poisoning mostly occurs in middle-aged and elderly people over 45 years old, mostly men. Due to long-term use of iron preparations or excessive iron intake from food, the amount of iron in the body exceeds the normal level by 10 to 20 times, which may lead to symptoms of chronic poisoning: large amounts of iron deposits in the liver and spleen, which may manifest as cirrhosis, osteoporosis, cartilage calcification, brown or gray skin, and decreased insulin secretion leading to diabetes. It can also affect the development of reproductive organs of adolescents. Iron poisoning has also been reported to induce epilepsy (epilepsy).

For the treatment of iron poisoning, doctors should treat the symptoms and patients should follow the doctor's instructions. To prevent iron poisoning, first, when taking iron supplements such as ferrous sulfate to treat anemia, be sure to avoid overdose and strictly prevent children from taking them by mistake. It is best to take porphyrin iron supplements, a new product of modern technology, which not only has a high absorption rate but also is less likely to cause side effects. Second, do not store acidic foods in iron containers for a long time, and do not use iron pots to cook acidic foods such as hawthorn, so as to prevent a large amount of iron from dissolving into the food under acidic conditions.

Through the above introduction, we know the harm of iron to the human body. In normal times, we must pay attention to our daily diet and living habits, try to stay away from polluted environments. In the event of iron poisoning, we must go to the hospital for examination and treatment in time, especially paying attention to our living habits.