Quote Originally Posted by emily_in_nc
Iron supplements kill my stomach/intestines. I just can't take them. I am not even close to anemic, according to my hematocrit levels, which my doc checks regularly. I get plenty of iron in my diet (or am good at holding onto what I do have, even though I do menstruate), so have no need to take extra and mess up my tummy. That's all. It can be quite hard to find a multi-vit/min tablet without iron, which is why I put the emphasis there. I looked fairly long to find this one and have been very satisfied with it.

Emily
I don't really "get" the whole menstruation/iron problem. I mean, yes, we lose some blood, but it doesn't seem like it's that *much* blood, does it? I think I've lost more blood on some rides than I ever have during my period! Then again, I've always been blessed with light ones.

I get that blood contains iron, but do we really lose enough blood for it to be significant? Or is there some other factor I'm missing?