u/sub_arbore

I've just found out that I'm C282Y homozygous. I had a normal iron panel in August 2025 (checking for something else), then in April my results came back as iron 197 (normal 30-150), UIBC <17 (normal 70-310), TIBC and TSAT couldn't be calculated because my UIBC was so low. Ferritin is 263. AST and ALT are fine.

I'm waiting for my doctor to send me next steps, but am particularly curious about dietary changes. I typically eat high-protein, low-processed food and low on grains with maybe 1-2 flex meals a week and some snacks based on social events, and my usual meats are chicken, eggs, and salmon. I drink socially but not super heavily. I was feeling pretty good on that diet and I feel worried about changing it too much.

• Do I need to worry about cooking in cast iron? It really only comes up camping, but I do that quite often over the summer.
• When I have bread, do I need to look for non-enriched flour or just not fortified?
• Do I need to cut back on meat?
• Any other dietary considerations I need to account for? I saw that coffee, tea, and dairy can inhibit iron absorption, and alcohol and vitamin C increase it so I at least need to split when I consume them.