Ferritin, your iron store Serum Ferritin
The protein your body stores iron in.
Also printed asFerritin
What it measures
The protein that holds your reserve iron, so its level reflects how much iron you have banked.
Empties long before haemoglobin falls, which is why low ferritin explains fatigue and hair loss in someone who is not yet anaemic.
Why it matters for how long you stay well
It is the earliest warning of an iron shortage, and in India it also decides whether your three-month sugar average can be trusted, because low iron lifts that number on its own.
How it shows up in daily life
Low stores can leave you tired, breathless and losing hair long before haemoglobin itself drops.
High and low readings
When it reads high
Can rise with inflammation or liver strain, not only with iron overload - read it with hs-CRP.
When it reads low
Your iron reserve is running down, usually before haemoglobin drops.
What moves it
Daily life
- iron from meat, dal, green leafy vegetables and jaggery
- vitamin C with meals
- tea and coffee with meals, which block iron
- heavy periods
- blood donation
Medicines known to shift it
- iron supplements (raise it)
- PPIs (can lower it by reducing iron absorption)
Listed so a result can be read in context. It is not advice to start, stop or change any medicine; that decision belongs with your physician.
Read it with
Markers that move this one, or that this one moves. One number read alone can mislead.
- Three-month sugar averageKnown mechanism
As this rises, Three-month sugar average can be misread because of it
Low iron stores make red cells live longer, and older cells have had more time to collect sugar. So the three-month average reads high without your sugar having moved.
- Iron-binding capacityKnown mechanism
As this rises, Iron-binding capacity falls as it rises
When stores run low, your body builds more iron carriers to catch whatever arrives. So binding capacity climbs as your stores fall; the two move in opposite directions.
- Transferrin saturationKnown mechanism
As this rises, Transferrin saturation moves with it
Saturation is how full those carriers are. Empty stores mean less iron to load onto them, so saturation falls alongside the stores.
- Haemoglobin, your oxygen carrierKnown mechanism
As this rises, Haemoglobin rises with it
Iron is the raw material your body builds haemoglobin from. Stores empty first, and only once they are empty does haemoglobin start to fall.
- Red cell sizeKnown mechanism
As this rises, Red cell size rises with it
Short of iron, your body builds smaller red cells rather than fewer of them. So the average cell size drops as your stores run down.
- Haemoglobin per cellKnown mechanism
As this rises, Haemoglobin per cell rises with it
Smaller cells hold less oxygen pigment each. So the pigment per cell falls in step with your iron stores, for the same reason.
- Red cell size spreadObserved association
As this rises, Red cell size spread falls as it rises
As iron runs out, the newest cells come out smaller than the ones already circulating. Mixed sizes widen the spread, often before haemoglobin has moved at all.
- hs-CRP, the inflammation dialKnown mechanism
hs-CRP can make it misleading
Ferritin doubles as an inflammation protein. So a healthy-looking ferritin drawn during an illness cannot prove your iron stores are actually full.
- ESR, the settling rateObserved association
ESR can make it misleading
A raised settling rate is signalling the same inflammation from a slower angle. It is a second reason to repeat the ferritin once you are properly well.
Common questions
What does Serum Ferritin measure?
The protein that holds your reserve iron, so its level reflects how much iron you have banked. Empties long before haemoglobin falls, which is why low ferritin explains fatigue and hair loss in someone who is not yet anaemic.
What does a high Ferritin result usually mean?
Can rise with inflammation or liver strain, not only with iron overload - read it with hs-CRP.
What does a low Ferritin result usually mean?
Your iron reserve is running down, usually before haemoglobin drops.
What is the usual reference range for Ferritin?
A broad adult reference band is 30–400 ng/mL. For women the band is 15–150 ng/mL. Labs differ, so read your result against the band printed on your own report.
Educational only, not a diagnosis. A single number means little without your history and the rest of your panel, so discuss your own results with your physician.
Typical adult reference band
- Men
- 30–400 ng/mL
- Women
- 15–150 ng/mL
Labs differ. The band printed on your own report is the one that applies to your result.
Reported in ng/mL, µg/L
Ageing relevance
4/5
A strong independent predictor of illness and mortality in large cohorts.
Indian reference data
Published data on this marker in Indian adults: NFHS-5; WHO 2020 ferritin guidelines.
Worth knowing
It doubles as an inflammation protein, so it climbs during any illness whether or not your iron stores are full.
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