Iron is the most abundant trace element in the body. This pro-oxidant mineral participates in various metabolic functions, such as the transport, storage and use of oxygen in the muscles, and the synthesis of DNA. Several studies have shown that the overload of this mineral, measured through serum ferritin, can modulate the state of oxidative stress in cells, so it may be related to the development and progression of insulin resistance. The main objective of this review is to describe the relationship between serum ferritin levels and biochemical parameters related to insulin resistance. For this, a search was carried out in the databases of Pubmed, Elsevier, Ebscohost and Scielo, with defined search criteria and taking into account the biochemical parameters of iron status as an independent variable and insulin resistance as a dependent variable. Within the results, it was found that the Spearman correlation test showed a positive correlation (p <0.05) for the variables ferritin and HOMA-IR, demonstrating that there is indeed a relationship between iron deposits and insulin resistance. It is concluded that the increase in serum ferritin, either through mechanisms of iron overload or mechanisms of inflammation, may constitute a risk factor for developing insulin resistant.