Ferritin in Serum

The most sensitive marker of iron storage and also an indicator of inflammation.
Also known as:
S-ferritin
.
Do not confuse with serum Iron (Fe).
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Ferritin ranges for

Interpret your result
"Normal" lab range for Ferritin is between 22 and 500 µg/L for males:
22
500
According to Peter Attia, Ferritin should be between 30 and 400 µg/L:
30
400
According to OptimalDX, Ferritin should be between 45 and 79 µg/L:
45
79
According to American Gastroenterological Association, Ferritin should be above 45 µg/L:
45
Symptomatic hemochromatosis was associated with Ferritin above 500 µg/L:
500
Unexplained fatigue and weakness was associated with Ferritin below 50 µg/L:
50
Hair loss was associated with Ferritin below 40 µg/L:
40
70
Restless Legs Syndrome was associated with Ferritin below 75 µg/L:
75
Increased all cause mortality was associated with Ferritin above 194 µg/L in males:
194
Optimal range
Optimal range for Ferritin appears to be between 60 and 110 µg/L:
0
40
60
110
200
600
Why this optimal range?

Both observational and interventional data suggest that ferritin levels below 60 µg/L may be associated with symptoms.

Longitudinal studies indicate that both high and low ferritin levels are linked to increased all-cause mortality. But GWAS studies suggest that lower ferritin levels are preferable, so I am inclined to keep ferritin levels relatively low, yet above the level associated with symptoms.

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Images:

Ferritin was associated with all cause mortality

Ferritin was associated with all cause mortality

Model 5 is the fully adjusted model. Significant results in bold
5,471 participants
Community dwellers aged ≥52 years from England.
Dataset: English Longitudinal Study of Ageing
Longitudinal study
High ferritin was associated with moderate rise in mortality

High ferritin was associated with moderate rise in mortality

Plasma ferritin cannot be reliably converted to serum ferritin.
8,988 participants
Randomly selected Danish population 20 to 80 years old followed up for 23 years.
Dataset: The Copenhagen City Heart Study
Longitudinal study
High ferritin was associated with moderate rise in mortality

High ferritin was associated with moderate rise in mortality

257,953 participants
GWAS Mendelian randomization study
Ferritin was not associated with all-cause mortality

Ferritin was not associated with all-cause mortality

However, all-cause mortality was inversely associated with transferrin saturation (%) in men.
5,695 participants
50 years or older men and postmenopausal women.
Longitudinal study

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Zsolt Szabo
Zsolt Szabo
Precision Health Consultant for Longevity Clinics, Biohacker, and Software Engineer

Please send me relevant research and feedback.

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I am particularly interested in research on biomarkers associated with all-cause mortality and on defining optimal reference ranges.