As South Africa wraps up Mental Health Awareness Month this week, health experts are drawing attention to a surprising connection, one that links something as simple as iron levels to how we think, feel, and function every day.
According to Sister Karin Davidson, anaemia advocate and head of the Cape Town Infusion Centre , low iron stores can directly affect mood and cognitive performance.
So many people don't realise that iron plays a vital role in producing serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine, the neurotransmitters that regulate mood, sleep, focus, and emotional stability, she explains.