I have always had iron overload due to high ferritin levels (over 3000 ng/ml) and have been on iron chelators (read this article about the natural iron chelators I take) most of my life. Later on I developed joint pain in shoulders and knee joints which progressed to the point that my mobility was decreasing.
I could not sit on the floor and get up easily, and I couldn’t sit on my knees with my legs folded.
Bending my knees and putting pressure on them was next to impossible for me with the pain.
But I have been able to reverse these problems and improve my mobility and I wrote this article to share how I did that.
Mobility and Stretching Exercises
Mobility and stretching exercises greatly helped me. Here are some of the YouTube videos I followed and they very really helpful.
You will find plenty of other stretching and mobility videos on YouTube that will show you the best way to open up those joints to reduce pain and inflammation which will lead to better mobility.
Turmeric
Turmeric is an excellent herb with potent anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. I have been taking it for a few years now and it has really helped with the knee pain due to iron overload. Research has also shown that turmeric helps in chelating iron and reducing the overall iron overload from the body. Click here to read more about turmeric for iron chelation.
The best way to take turmeric is by adding it to your diet or taking it with milk at night (also called Golden Milk). But I prefer to take it in supplement form as it is more convenient and I can control the dosage as well.
I use Nature’s Nutrition Turmeric Curcumin with BioPerine (affiliate link) which is an excellent product with great reviews as well.
I would recommend starting with a low dose to see how it works for you and then slowly raising the dose if required.
Black Seed Oil
Black seed oil is high in antioxidants and has several benefits for health including iron overload. Multiple studies have found that a black seed oil supplement suppressed inflammation and showed significant effects in relieving joint and knee pain.
I take black seed oil everyday with honey first thing in the morning. It has helped me with improving my overall health and immunity.
Here is an amazing article about the great benefits of Black Seed Oil that you should definitely check out.
Wet Cupping (Hijama)
Wet cupping is another thing that has really helped me with back, shoulder and knee pain. It is a safe and painless way of reducing toxins and inflammation from the body and really helps in reducing the stress on joints and other organs as well.
It has also helped in reducing iron overload and my ferritin levels have gone down significantly since I started wet cupping sessions.
Have you ever tried wet cupping?
You can read more about wet cupping in this article I wrote.
Can too much iron really cause knee pain?
Yes, too much iron can cause knee pain.
Research suggests that iron overload leads to iron being deposited in the joints which results in pain. Hence it is really important to find and treat the root cause of knee pain.
If the pain is from iron overload, you will need to start iron chelation to remove the iron deposits from your body.
Is knee pain from iron overload treatable naturally?
Yes, knee pain from iron overload can be treated naturally by bringing down the iron levels and exercising to improve knee movement and mobility.
The best way to do this is to eat the right foods to reduce iron stores, remove toxins and reinforce the knee joints with stretching and mobility exercises.
I have tried it, and it works.
