# Hematocrit on HRT



## TR90125 (Oct 17, 2012)

Seeing a couple recent threads about donating blood and Hematocrit levels got me curious.  I have been on HRT over a year and I have not donated blood during that time.

Per my last two labs, my Hematocrit levels were:

Feberuary 2012     49.3
August 2012          47.5

My levle in December 2010, before ever starting HRT was 45.4 and in reviewing all my labs since then, my highest reading was 49.5.

Should I be worried about donating blood?  Are there any adjustments that can be made or supplements that can bring this number down or should I just roll with it?

As a reminder, my protocol is:

Test Cyp, 50mg every 84 hours
HCG 600 IU's every 84 hours


----------



## DF (Oct 17, 2012)

As long as all your blood work is in range I wouldn't worry about it.  However, if it's on the higher end of normal then it wouldn't be a bad idea.  Do you have the rest of the CBC work & ranges?  I believe that by taking your injections the way you are you will have minimal impact on your crit levels.


----------



## RowdyBrad (Oct 17, 2012)

My levels are like yours, never above 49 but I donate every 2 months. I just feel alot better when I do and it makes a small difference.


----------



## Christosterone (Oct 17, 2012)

Donating blood would be a good thing


----------



## Cashout (Oct 17, 2012)

Unless your CBC profile increases, donating is not necessary. Like you, when I was on HRT, my Crit % never went above 48%. Once you start to get in the 50% + range you need to watch it carefully especially if you have other cardiac-related factors like a skewed lipid profile, ect.


----------



## Illtemper (Oct 18, 2012)

Cashout said:


> Unless your CBC profile increases, donating is not necessary. Like you, when I was on HRT, my Crit % never went above 48%. Once you start to get in the 50% + range you need to watch it carefully especially if you have other cardiac-related factors like a skewed lipid profile, ect.



So besides donating, Will taking any type of supplements help to keep it lower??  mine jumped up as you know, and i was reading taking any type of iron supplement makes it worse, meaning multi vitamins too....   any thoughts??


----------



## curls (Oct 18, 2012)

fish oil, coq10, and a baby asprin


----------



## Cashout (Oct 18, 2012)

Illtemper said:


> So besides donating, Will taking any type of supplements help to keep it lower??  mine jumped up as you know, and i was reading taking any type of iron supplement makes it worse, meaning multi vitamins too....   any thoughts??



Nothing over the counter will inhibit the increase in synthesis of erythropoietin the glycoprotein hormone that controls red blood cell production via the bone marrow. Again, this is a situation where the stasis between the hormones in the body is very tricky business. The endocrine systems is a very complex balancing act and is very much like a set of interconnected gears - if you turn one just a little bit, they all turn as well. That is what happens when you add too much of a hormone like testosterone to the mix - all the other gears turn too and things will get misaligned.


----------



## Illtemper (Oct 18, 2012)

so cash whats your thoughts on Iron supplements and raising hemocrit levels, would it cause crit levels to rise as it is known to raise hemoglobin levels??   Is it safe to say anytime your globin levels go up so will your crit, or can you have high globin without effecting crit levels??


----------



## ripped_one (Oct 18, 2012)

Iron supps alone will only help if you are deficient in iron.

When I was taking epo to get to 55% hematocrit (or more) I would load with iron for several weeks to get my ferritin up, but high ferritin never increased rbcs alone


----------



## Christosterone (Oct 18, 2012)

If it gets too high, you can donate whole blood, not plasma. Oral iron isn't readily absorbed, but it will still slowly increase ferritin, and decrease TIBC. Other vitamins that have a major effect is folic acid and B12,  deficiencies in those two cause macrocytic anemia, where as iron deficiency would lead to microcytic anemia. You determine this on bloodwork under MCV. Most gear increases rbc production so mcv should be monitored to see if you are lacking one of those vitamins or minerals.


----------



## ripped_one (Oct 18, 2012)

Agreed, most oral iron supps are worthless.  The only oral iron worth taking is ferrochels.  And even then I was taking 10 caps a day to get it up high enough.  IM iron is the way to go if you absolutely need it.


----------



## 03ACE (Oct 19, 2012)

I only donate every 4 months, but that's all they will allow me to do, since I do Alyx which is a double red blood cell donation. I never seem to feel different before or after a blood donation, but my count drops (obviously), which keeps my crit in check.


----------



## corvettels3 (Oct 25, 2012)

curls said:


> fish oil, coq10, and a baby asprin



that has nothing to do with hematocrit numbers


----------



## curls (Oct 26, 2012)

corvettels3 said:


> that has nothing to do with hematocrit numbers



I read the post wrong I thought he was asking what suppliments help.


----------



## pirovoliko (Oct 26, 2012)

03ACE said:


> I only donate every 4 months, but that's all they will allow me to do, since I do Alyx which is a double red blood cell donation. I never seem to feel different before or after a blood donation, but my count drops (obviously), which keeps my crit in check.



^^^^^^2x RBC donation is best to keep crit  in check. Do it twice a year.  And I do feel better after donation


----------

