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Cause of long COVID pinpointed as iron deficiency, scientists say

Researchers have pinpointed iron deficiencies as a key factor in prolonged recovery from COVID-19, commonly referred to as long COVID.

A study by the University of Cambridge, recently published in Nature Immunology, uncovered the significant role of depleted iron levels in post-COVID symptoms. Findings suggest that low iron not only exacerbates inflammation and anemia but also disrupts the production of healthy red blood cells shortly after contracting COVID-19.

“When the body has an infection, it responds by removing iron from the bloodstream. This protects us from potentially lethal bacteria that capture the iron in the bloodstream and grow rapidly,” said co-author Hal Drakesmith, according to the New York Post. “It’s an evolutionary response that redistributes iron in the body, and the blood plasma becomes an iron desert.”



Within just two weeks post-diagnosis, patients exhibited a direct correlation between diminished iron reserves and increased health complications. A number of the patients later experienced persistent long COVID conditions, a syndrome now linked to cognitive decline, including a measurable reduction in IQ caused by brain fog. 

“Although we saw evidence that the body was trying to rectify low iron availability and the resulting anemia by producing more red blood cells, it was not doing a particularly good job of it in the face of ongoing inflammation,” said researcher Dr. Aimee Hanson.

Nearly 30% of those infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus could be susceptible to long COVID, according to estimates from the University of Cambridge. Meanwhile, data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicate that almost 3 million Americans require treatment for anemia or iron deficiency annually.

Mr. Drakesmith, one of the lead researchers, emphasized the serious nature of sustained iron insufficiency. “When this happens over a long duration, the lack of iron results in oxygen being ‘less efficiently’ transported throughout the body,” he said. The consequences are profound, influencing not just the oxygen flow but also critically impacting metabolism and energy levels.”

“Iron levels, and the way the body regulates iron,” Dr. Hanson said, “were disrupted early on during [a COVID] infection, and took a very long time to recover, particularly in those people who went on to report long COVID months later.

“It isn’t necessarily the case that individuals don’t have enough iron in their body, it’s just that it’s trapped in the wrong place,” she said. “What we need is a way to remobilize the iron and pull it back into the bloodstream, where it becomes more useful to the red blood cells.”

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