Endurance athletes want adequate iron. They don’t want iron dietary supplements that include GI points. Right here’s an answer.
Athletes want iron to carry out at their finest. (Picture: Getty Photos)
Revealed March 10, 2026 12:20PM
In distance runners, cyclists, triathletes, and different endurance athletes, iron deficiency and anemia are sometimes the culprits behind fatigue and low power ranges. Feminine athletes, specifically, are at a good larger danger for iron deficiency and iron deficiency anemia. As much as one-third of reproductive-aged ladies could not have sufficient iron, and intensive train can improve a girl’s danger for iron deficiency. As much as 35% of feminine athletes undergo from low iron ranges in comparison with simply 3-11% of male athletes.
Whereas many athletes surprise in the event that they’re getting sufficient iron, an iron deficiency is commonly straightforward to miss or misattribute. However even when it’s accurately recognized, treating it may possibly current issues. Many iron dietary supplements may cause microbiome disruption and GI misery like cramps, constipation, urge for food loss, and different abdomen issues that will impede an athlete’s exercises. It is because the dietary supplements react with the abdomen’s acidic atmosphere and result in free radicals that contribute to disagreeable negative effects. In actual fact, as much as 70% of individuals taking typical iron dietary supplements report GI misery. And once you’re making an attempt to push your self on an already grueling run or experience, the very last thing you wish to be worrying about is what’s occurring in your intestine.
That’s the place ACCRUFeR® (ferric maltol) is available in. ACCRUFeR’s patented MALTOL SHIELD™ protects iron because it passes by means of the abdomen, which lowers the chance of GI points, which may very well be a sport changer for endurance athletes.
Why Is Iron So Vital?
Iron performs an enormous half in guaranteeing that your physique has the power it must tackle each day distance exercises and massive races. It’s a key element of hemoglobin: the protein in pink blood cells that helps transport oxygen out of your lungs to your muscle tissues.
Iron deficiency anemia may cause severe bodily results, together with fatigue, lowered train tolerance, dizziness, shortness of breath, tachycardia, headache, lowered cognitive perform, stressed legs, and even despair.
TLDR? Low iron = much less oxygen, that means extra muscle fatigue and fewer power.
Whether or not you at present take an iron complement and have been experiencing GI points, or are newly recognized with an iron deficiency, it’s price asking your well being supplier about ACCRUFeR® (ferric maltol).
How It Works
Conventional iron dietary supplements are sometimes damaged down too early by the physique, leaving iron within the abdomen, which results in as a lot as 95% of the iron going unabsorbed and people well-known GI points. ACCRUFeR® is completely different. It was designed with a compound known as maltol, which protects iron from the abdomen in order that it may be absorbed within the small gut. This implies you profit from the iron and have a decrease danger of GI points.
And medical trial outcomes are promising—in medical trials, fewer than 5% of members stopped taking ACCRUFeR® due to its negative effects, and their iron ranges confirmed a rise in as few as 4 weeks.
Regular iron ranges assist athletes carry out and really feel their finest. Sia, an authorized private coach who suffered from low iron felt held again earlier than in search of therapy. “I barely had the power to get off the bed,” she says. “Fatigue, complications, and shortness of breath actually impacted my on a regular basis actions.”
She’s feeling significantly better lately, although. “After 12 weeks on ACCRUFeR®, my iron ranges improved, and as soon as they did, I had extra power, felt extra rested.*” As with many issues, it’s exhausting to think about what “higher” looks like till you’re really feeling it. You won’t assume that your lagging power is because of any underlying situation or contemplate that your GI points could be because of your each day iron complement till you see the outcomes for your self.
In the event you’re in any respect involved, it’s price exploring your choices. Ask your healthcare supplier about testing for iron deficiency, together with each hemoglobin and iron shops (ferritin). In the event you’re taking iron dietary supplements and bored with coping with GI discomfort or misery, ask your healthcare supplier about ACCRUFeR® as a possible therapy possibility.
For Vital Security Info and full Prescribing Info for ACCRUFeR®, go to https://www.accrufer.com/product-information
*Outcomes could range. Regular hemoglobin ranges are >12 g/dL for ladies and >13 g/dL for males.
ACCRUFeR® (ferric maltol) is an efficient, low-dose therapy for sufferers with iron deficiency (ID) or iron deficiency anemia (IDA). ACCRUFeR is FDA authorised to be used in adults and youngsters 10 years of age and older.
ACC-US-00667 03/2026
