Ferrous Sulphate 200mg tablets

franby64

I've been buying these tablets for my daughters for 2/3 years and always paid around £4 -£4.50 for 100 in Boots.
I went in there the other day and was quoted over £26 for the same tub.
I've emailed Boots but they are now saying that I was always under charged before which I find hard to believe.
Has anybody else experienced this price hike for these tablets? Is there a world shortage of iron?! I would love to know what's going on. And is there anywhere I can get some at a reasonable price?
Thanks.

tomtontom

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Ferrous-Sulphate-200mg-Tablets-100/dp/B00PS61OW4/ref=pd_sim_121_1?ie=UTF8&dpID=21ez1FW2d3L&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR160%2C160_&refRID=1RMKZ1RK38Q5MZ02JFMN

Not sure why Boots are charging so much, try one of the supermarket pharmacies if you don't want to buy online.

I assume your daughters are iron deficient? Are they not able to get them in a high quantity on prescription?

Torry_Quine

That does seem very expensive. I would try other chemists.

I presume she has been prescribed this as too much iron can have dangerous effects

Jemima09

It's not just boots, I used to buy the 100s |but then they went off the market for a long time, and it was just meant to be a 'supply issue' although the 28s were always still available for £2 ish - this was a few years back now...

Packets of 28 are now between around £2.50-£3.50 (I think I paid £3.15 at tesco pharmacy), but the 100s are £25ish. Makes no sense but never mind!

franby64

Thank you all for your replies.

Tomtontom - I'll keep a note of the link but I 'm a bit wary of buying medication over the internet.

Torry Quine - Both my daughters were diagnosed with anaemia after blood tests and we just kept on with the iron tablets because it seemed like a good idea. It's probably time they got retested and then got iron tablets on prescription if they still need to take high dosages.

Jemima09 - It's strange isn't it. The maths doesn't follow. I'd forgotten about the packets of 28 though, might buy them.

I still don't feel Boots are telling me the whole story so I'll keep trying to find out!

Jemima09

Boots definitely don't tell you the full story! It was them that I first went to this time of needing to take them, and I asked could I still buy them over the counter, and she said I could but they were expensive! And i forgot to ask about the boxes..

I really don't get what the difference is, they're the same tablets, same shape same everything from what I can tell! But the boxes never went up in price..

greenbee

It's definitely worth getting your daughters retest - as Torry says excessive iron can be dangerous. (Last time I was severely anaemic I had careful calculations done to work out the max dose to avoid toxicity and was told not to lose weight).

However, ferrous sulphate is not a nice way to supplement iron. They have VERY constipating and need a high fibre diet. Ferrous fumarate is better (although that was in supply constraint last time I took it about 3 years ago), and there are plenty of gentler options available for those who don't need such high doses.

I'm still undergoing treatment and monitoring for iron deficiency anaemia, and current practice seems to be to avoid iron supplementation where possible and work to stabilise iron levels. I'm making progress, and replenishing stores combined with an improved diet has helped but we're not quite there yet - next step is apparently to try to improve absorption by supplementing vitamin C (which is less problematic) rather than iron.

As both medical best practice and your daughters' iron levels may have changed, it is well worth a review.

pmduk

I'm prescribed ferrous fumurate and have never had problems getting my prescription filled so perhaps the supply constraint has eased?

heuchera

greenbee wrote: »

However, ferrous sulphate is not a nice way to supplement iron. They have VERY constipating and need a high fibre diet. Ferrous fumarate is better (although that was in supply constraint last time I took it about 3 years ago), and there are plenty of gentler options available for those who don't need such high doses.

Spa-tone is pretty good and doesn't have nasty side effects, as it's just iron-rich water.

DigForVictory

I used to have a nip of Floradix & a nap when the baby allowed. Restorative combination!

Please get back to your GP as both anaemia & iron toxicity are unpleasant, and even if prescription costs are high at least you can negotiate how many tablets you're getting or a clear steer as to what strength & for how long before review.
All the best!

FBaby

Just bought some at Tesco today, they only sold boxes of 28 and that was £2 something.

I previously bought them at Asda, and the pharmacist recommended buying 100 as it was much cheaper. I can't remember the price but it was definitely under £5. When I went this week-end, they were out, but said they would have it next week. I will check next time if the price has gone up from 3 months ago.

As to whether it is right to take iron or not, I think it is a very personal issue. I've never suffered from anemia, but I do have a naturally low level of it. It probably wouldn't be an issue except that I have a very busy life and am very physically active (run half marathon and more) and I can really feel the difference with my trainingoi9i when I take iron tablets (200mg every other day).

I eat bran flakes every day and as long as I do, no problem with constipation.