For absorption, dietary iron ( 70%) is reduced by gastric acid form the ferric (Fe3+) to the ferrous form (Fe2+). Recently, in an observational open study, Hutchinson et al. found that HH patients treated with proton pump inhibitors (PPI) needed fewer phlebotomies, resulting in a drop of 2.5 (SEM 0.25) to 0.5 (SEM 0.25) liter per year.