Tardyferon 80mg Tablets 30s is a prolonged-release iron medicine used to treat iron deficiency anaemia and to prevent iron deficiency in pregnancy. Each film-coated tablet delivers 80mg of elemental iron as dried ferrous sulfate, released gradually to improve digestive tolerance. Manufactured in France by Pierre Fabre, Tardyferon 80mg is a medicine rather than a dietary supplement, and it should be taken on the advice of a doctor or pharmacist after iron deficiency has been confirmed.

How It Works

Iron is required to make haemoglobin, the protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen around the body. When iron stores fall, haemoglobin production drops and the tiredness, breathlessness and pallor of iron deficiency anaemia follow. Tardyferon replenishes those stores. Its prolonged-release coating spreads iron release along the gut rather than dumping it in the stomach, which is what makes it better tolerated than immediate-release iron salts.

Important Information

Do not take Tardyferon if you are allergic to iron, if your anaemia is not caused by iron deficiency, or if you have iron overload. It will not work if your deficiency stems from an inflammatory condition. Separate it by at least two hours from tea, coffee, milk, eggs, wholegrain cereals and antacids, all of which block absorption, and from tetracycline antibiotics, levothyroxine, bisphosphonates and penicillamine. Black stools are expected and harmless. Constipation, nausea and stomach discomfort are common. Keep out of reach of children: iron overdose is a serious poisoning risk in young children and needs emergency medical attention. Consult your healthcare provider before starting, and do not self-diagnose anaemia.

• Elemental iron 80mg per tablet. This is the figure that matters clinically: 80mg is the elemental iron itself, not the weight of the salt.

• Supplied as dried ferrous sulfate 247.25mg (equivalent to ferrous sulfate 1.5 H2O, 256.3mg).

• Excipients include maltodextrin, microcrystalline cellulose, ammoniomethacrylate copolymer, glycerol dibehenate, talc, titanium dioxide and iron oxides.

• Tardyferon 80mg contains no folic acid and no vitamin C. Some retailer listings state otherwise; those describe Tardyferon B9, a separate product.

Follow your doctor's instructions. The standard posology is 1 to 2 tablets daily for adults and children over 10, and 1 tablet daily from age 6. In pregnancy, 1 tablet daily or every second day through the last two trimesters, from the fourth month. Swallow the tablet whole with a large glass of water. Do not suck, chew or hold it in your mouth, as this risks tooth discolouration and mouth ulceration. Treatment usually continues for 1 to 3 months after blood counts normalise, to rebuild iron stores.