I had a blood test once as a part of a regular checkup, and I suspected that some symptoms I have might be caused by iron deficiency. But the doctor looked at the results and said “nope, all values are within the norm”.
I told him my hypothesis, and he showed me the scale for iron, with the interval of “healthy”, and he showed me that my results were exactly one pixel above the minimum. Which means healthy, yay! Because it would be a deficiency only if it was at least one pixel below the minimum.
(Then I took supplements anyway and felt better. Of course, chances are it was just a placebo effect.)
I happen to be a tall white man, but I wish doctors distinguished between “normal” and “technically still normal” values. Damn, I am not asking whether I am eligible for disability. I am merely curious about whether there is some trivial action I could take that has a potential to make me feel significantly better.
(Not in USA, btw. Just saying, because the article mentions USA.)
I had a blood test once as a part of a regular checkup, and I suspected that some symptoms I have might be caused by iron deficiency. But the doctor looked at the results and said “nope, all values are within the norm”.
I told him my hypothesis, and he showed me the scale for iron, with the interval of “healthy”, and he showed me that my results were exactly one pixel above the minimum. Which means healthy, yay! Because it would be a deficiency only if it was at least one pixel below the minimum.
(Then I took supplements anyway and felt better. Of course, chances are it was just a placebo effect.)
I happen to be a tall white man, but I wish doctors distinguished between “normal” and “technically still normal” values. Damn, I am not asking whether I am eligible for disability. I am merely curious about whether there is some trivial action I could take that has a potential to make me feel significantly better.
(Not in USA, btw. Just saying, because the article mentions USA.)