Available iron-binding capacity
Biomarker library
Iron Status
TIBC
TIBC (total iron-binding capacity) measures how much iron your blood could carry if every seat on its transport protein, transferrin, were filled.
Measured in your health assessment, with a doctor to explain your result. Book yours
Why it matters
It is effectively an indirect measure of transferrin. When the body is short of iron, the liver makes more transferrin to catch every available atom, so TIBC goes up.
What a result can mean
Lower than the range
A low TIBC is seen with inflammation, liver disease, poor nutrition or iron overload, when the body makes less transferrin.
Higher than the range
A high TIBC usually points to iron deficiency. It also rises in pregnancy and with oestrogen-containing contraception.
What can help
TIBC responds to your iron status rather than being treated directly. It settles as iron deficiency is corrected or inflammation resolves.
Read it with
NoteGeneral educational illustration. Colours, sizes and movement are simplified. This is not a scan or a simulation of your body. General information, not personal medical advice: a doctor reads your own results with your history.
Know your TIBC.
Measured in your health assessment and explained by the doctor who reviews your results.