Welcome to The Egg Whisperer Show! Could your iron stores be secretly impacting your fertility, even when your blood work looks perfectly normal? Today we’re diving into the nuances of low ferritin with normal hemoglobin, and what it could mean for your lining, your transfers, your pregnancy, and your overall fertility journey.
My guest is Anne Matthews, acupuncturist, fertility and women’s hormone expert, founder of Energy Tree Studios in Oakville, Ontario, and a Fellow of the American Board of Oriental Reproductive Medicine (FABORM). She’s a Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioner who specializes in supporting fertility patients, and this is her second time on the show.
In this episode, we cover:
- What ferritin is, how it differs from hemoglobin, and why a normal CBC doesn’t tell the whole story
- Iron deficiency without anemia
- Who’s most at risk: heavy periods, endometriosis, adenomyosis, fibroids, recurrent pregnancy loss, restrictive diets, and more
- What the latest research (2022–2026 studies) says about ferritin below 30, unexplained infertility, and IVF transfer success
- The connection between Traditional Chinese Medicine “blood deficiency” and modern iron deficiency: where they overlap and where they don’t
- When to investigate deeper causes like celiac disease or GI issues
- Key questions to ask your doctor if you suspect your iron stores are low
Resources:
Connect with Anne Matthews on Instagram: @energytreestudios
Energy Tree Studios (Oakville, Ontario)
2024 Australian study on endometriosis and iron deficiency
2023 systematic review on acupuncture for endometriosis-related pain
Recurrent pregnancy loss and ferritin study (84 women with RPL vs. 153 controls)
2022, 2025, and 2026 studies on ferritin under 30 and unexplained infertility
FeraMAX (example iron supplement discussed):
