Blood work after 9 months WFPB

[areli]

I have been plant-based for 9 months now and I feel amazing! Prior to this I was mostly vegetarian for a few months. Since I transitioned into veganism I have supplemented with B12, DHA+EPA, and D3. I just got some comprehensive blood work to see how well I’m doing on my diet.
I had a basic metabolic panel, lipid panel, CBC, retinol test, zinc, magnesium, B12, vitamin D, TSH, PTH, C-reactive protein, and ESR test.
My total cholesterol was 125! All of my other blood counts were excellent and right within range. I also have no inflammation whatsoever.

My only minor concern was ferritin. The standard range was 22-275 ng/L and my number was 50. That seems a bit low for a young male and was wondering if I should be concerned about my iron stores falling over time. I eat a lot of beans, lentils, and tempeh and generally combine them with a source of vitamin C, fat, and beta carotene. Is there anything else I should do?

 

[personalizedbook]

@areli Do you track your iron intake? Keep in mind that the iron RDA for veg*ns is 1.8x the regular RDA (14.4 mg/day instead of 8 mg/day for men).

I had a basic metabolic panel, lipid panel, CBC, retinol test, zinc, magnesium, B12, vitamin D, TSH, PTH, C-reactive protein, and ESR test

Are you in the US? That would be quite an expensive set of tests here so I'm jealous!

 

[areli]

@personalizedbook Yep, I track on Cronometer. I typically hit at least 25 mg of iron most days.

Here in the US! My doctor wrote a prescription so that it’d be covered by my insurance. A little over 2 years back I was hospitalized due to a heart arrhythmia and ever since I’ve had to get comprehensive blood work every 6 months anyway. I just requested some additional tests this time around.

Two years ago I’d have an arrhythmic episode on a weekly basis. Since making the switch to plant-based I’ve had just one episode. I’m no longer prescribed any anti-arrhythmic medication!

 

[personalizedbook]

@areli

My doctor wrote a prescription so that it’d be covered by my insurance.

Nice!

A little over 2 years back I was hospitalized due to a heart arrhythmia

Not nice.

Since making the switch to plant-based I’ve had just one episode. I’m no longer prescribed any anti-arrhythmic medication!

Nice!

I typically hit at least 25 mg of iron most days.

That should be plenty so at this point I would just wait until your next 6 month test and see what that result is.

 

[dawn16]

@areli Did you pay out of pocket for this or did your doc give you a script so the insurance would cover it?