Crohn's and Iron Deficiency Anemia: What to Log

Updated 29 Oct 2026

Tiredness is so common with Crohn's that it is easy to file every tired week under the same heading. Low iron is one cause with its own tests, its own treatment, and a clearer path to feeling better, so it is worth logging on its own line.

This guide covers what to log for iron deficiency anemia with Crohn's: why iron runs low, the symptoms to note, blood test dates, iron tablets or infusions and their side effects, and iron in your meals.

Why iron runs low with Crohn's

Crohn's Journey (part of Health Journey Labs) reviewed guidance from Crohn’s & Colitis UK and the NHS. Crohn’s & Colitis UK says around 1 in 3 people with Crohn’s or Colitis have low iron levels, and that this could be because you are not getting enough iron in your diet, you are losing blood, or you have problems absorbing iron from food (Crohn’s & Colitis UK).

It explains that low iron levels can lead to anemia, where you do not have as many red blood cells as you should to carry oxygen around your body, and that this can make you feel tired, breathless, or dizzy (Crohn’s & Colitis UK). The NHS also lists inflammation of the bowel among the causes of bleeding in the stomach and intestines that can lead to iron deficiency anemia (NHS iron deficiency anemia guidance).

Each of those reasons can be logged: blood in stool, flare weeks when absorption may suffer, and meals that were hard to eat. Together they help your IBD team see why iron fell.

For bleeding days, see a dated symptom table for blood in stool with Crohn’s.

In Crohn's Journey, the Stool Tracker (Bristol Scale) records each stool with a note on blood.

What to log about anemia symptoms

The NHS lists symptoms of iron deficiency anemia: tiredness and lack of energy, shortness of breath, noticeable heartbeats (heart palpitations), paler than usual skin, and headaches (NHS iron deficiency anemia guidance).

It also lists less common symptoms, including ringing, buzzing, or hissing noises in your head (tinnitus), food tasting strange, feeling itchy, a sore tongue, hair loss, wanting to eat non-food items such as paper or ice, finding it hard to swallow, painful sores in the corners of your mouth, spoon-shaped nails, and restless legs syndrome (NHS iron deficiency anemia guidance).

Log the ones you notice with a date and a simple rating. Breathlessness on the stairs or a racing heart on a short walk are easy to forget by the next visit, and they help separate low-iron tiredness from flare tiredness.

For tired days, see a minimum list for Crohn’s fatigue and daily errands.

In Crohn's Journey, the Daily check-in logs energy and symptoms on the same day as stool and meals.

What to log about blood tests

The NHS says a GP will ask about your lifestyle and medical history and will usually do a blood test called a full blood count (FBC) to find out if the number of red blood cells you have is normal (NHS iron deficiency anemia guidance). It notes the blood test will also check for other types of anemia, like vitamin B12 or folate deficiency anemia (NHS iron deficiency anemia guidance).

The NHS adds that your GP may carry out repeat blood tests over the next few months to check that your iron level is getting back to normal (NHS iron deficiency anemia guidance).

Log each test date, who ordered it, and when the repeat is due. File each result beside how you felt that month, so a low result can be read next to a flare or a quieter stretch.

For filing labs, see how to track Crohn’s labs next to flare and fatigue weeks.

In Crohn's Journey, My Labs keeps each result date beside your symptom weeks.

What to log about iron tablets and infusions

Crohn’s & Colitis UK says that if you have iron deficiency anemia, you are likely to need iron supplements, usually as tablets, capsules, or liquid medicine taken by mouth (Crohn’s & Colitis UK). It adds that if you are in a flare-up, your red blood cells are very low, or you get bad side effects from oral iron, you might have iron through a drip into a vein, called an iron infusion (Crohn’s & Colitis UK).

The NHS says iron tablets are usually taken for about 6 months, to follow your GP's advice about how to take them, and that it is important to keep taking them even if you get side effects (NHS iron deficiency anemia guidance). It lists side effects such as constipation or diarrhea, tummy pain, heartburn, feeling sick, and darker than usual poo, and suggests taking tablets with or soon after food to reduce the chance of side effects (NHS iron deficiency anemia guidance).

Log the start date, each dose, and any side effect. Darker stool and new constipation or diarrhea matter with Crohn's, so note them beside your stool entries and bring them to your team rather than stopping on your own.

In Crohn's Journey, My Meds keeps iron doses next to your other Crohn's medicines.

What to log about iron in meals

Crohn’s & Colitis UK says your IBD team or dietitian might check whether you are getting enough iron in your diet, and lists iron-rich foods such as dark green, leafy vegetables, peas, beans and lentils, nuts and seeds, cereals and bread with added iron, and red meat, fish, or poultry (Crohn’s & Colitis UK).

It notes that iron from plant-based foods is harder to absorb than from meat, but some vitamin C at the same meal can help, and that drinking tea or coffee with your meal, even decaf, can make iron harder to absorb, so try to wait an hour after eating (Crohn’s & Colitis UK). The NHS also notes you might be referred to a specialist dietitian if you find it hard to include iron in your diet (NHS iron deficiency anemia guidance).

With Crohn's, some iron-rich foods may be hard to eat. Log which ones you managed, which caused trouble, and when you had tea or coffee, so a dietitian can work with your real meals.

In Crohn's Journey, the Food Tracker records what you ate beside how your gut responded.

What to bring to your IBD team

Crohn’s & Colitis UK lists the reasons iron runs low, and the NHS lists the symptoms, tests, and treatment steps (Crohn’s & Colitis UK; NHS iron deficiency anemia guidance). A short summary before a visit turns those into facts about you.

Bring the dates of your last blood tests and results, the symptoms you logged with how often they came, the iron treatment you are on with start date and side effects, any blood in stool, and the foods you can and cannot manage.

Add one or two questions, such as whether a repeat test is due, or whether a different form of iron is worth discussing. Write the answers down after the visit with the date, along with any change to your iron dose or the date of a planned infusion, so the next visit starts from a clear record.

In Crohn's Journey, the Doctor Report turns those weeks into a summary for your IBD team.

How Crohn's Journey can help

A blood result shows one day. The harder part is keeping tiredness, test dates, iron doses, stool changes, and meals in one dated record, so your team can see how iron fits your Crohn's weeks.

Crohn's Journey is a personal Crohn's tracker from Health Journey Labs on the App Store and Google Play. It records symptoms, stool, meals, medicines, and labs in one dated history. For a side-by-side look at Crohn's trackers, see the best Crohn's disease apps in 2026. Below is what you can use and how each part helps:

• My Meds — Medicine names and timing, including biologics, steroids, or other options you use, so you can line up timing with stool weeks, pain, and sleep.
• Daily check-in — A short guided pass across symptoms, mood, nutrition, sleep, exercise, meds, and external factors, including energy and pain.
• Stool Tracker (Bristol Scale) — Stool form on the Bristol Scale plus color, urgency, blood amount, and pain level, so you can see how stool changes line up with meals and energy.
• Daily Journal — Freer notes, including voice when typing is hard, such as what the day limited, partner talks, or visit debriefs.
• Flare Tracker — Mark a day that is clearly worse than a normal bad day for you, with a category, intensity, and duration, so you can tell a one-off spike from a pattern.
• Weekly Goals — Set one small aim, such as a smaller evening meal or a walk after lunch, and see whether it held.
• AI companions — Clara and specialist companions, including nutrition, already see your logged history, which helps with visit wording or meal ideas.
• Doctor Report — Two views: the Appointment Planning Report, a list of questions to prepare before a visit, and Generate Report, a dated summary of your recent progress to show a doctor saved in My Care Team.
• Food Tracker — Meals and drinks, so you can see whether certain foods come before more pain, urgency, or tiredness.
• My Labs — Result dates for blood counts, stool tests, calprotectin, imaging, or other tests, so each result sits next to how you felt that month.
• Weight Tracker — Weight entries when weight loss, nutrition, or clinic weigh-ins are being watched.
• Learn — Short education topics on flare-ups, pacing, bathroom urgency, and visit preparation.
• My Assessments — Structured check-ins that add context about you across weeks.
• My Care Team — A profile for each clinician, plus visit notes used before, during, and after appointments.
• Period Tracker — Cycle dates and flow, so you can line up cycle timing with pain, stool, or energy.

Everything you log builds one history. Guided forms include the key questions, and you can add custom symptoms when you need your own labels. Crohn's Journey is free to download.

Sources

• Crohn’s & Colitis UK — Food and Crohn's or Colitis
• NHS — Iron deficiency anaemia

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