DEAR DR. GOTT: My mother is 81 years old. She has a problem with producing too much iron in her blood. The only treatment that we are aware of is to have blood drawn off when the count gets too high. What causes this? Is it hereditary? What can we do to keep the count low? Please let me know whether there is a relationship to the environment or food. Also, when the count starts to get high, her head starts to itch and she feels totally worn out. Can you help us?
My mother is on warfarin for blood clots in her legs (twice), calcium plus D, Actonel once a month, methotrexate for arthritis, folic acid and PreserVision for degeneration of her eyes.
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