Iron

Hey everyone, I recently had a blood test just to check my general health. Everything was fine except my Iron. I was put on iron tablets (had to take 2-3 a day) to boost my levels however I had recently come off them and seem to be having issues reaching my Iron % on My Fitness Pal.
I don't enjoy eating meat so mostly eat fish and stick to fruit and veg throughout my diet.
Was just wondering if anyone has any suggestions on how I can up my iron intake without eating a land animal lol
Thanks..

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Guinness is high in iron, take it from an Irish woman raise on the black stuff. (Used in our traditional Porter Cakes).
But dark chocolate and spinach are high in Iron too. There are iron fortified cereals, milks and other food stuffs available.

Eggs are awesome. Spinach, obviously (and other leafy green veggies). Avocados. A couple of things that surprised me were cinnamon (I have it in my coffee and on my yoghurt and watermelon for brekkie) and parsley (which I have in my scrambled eggs). Tempeh (fermented pressed soy beans, fab protein as well). I'm vegetarian, so obvs not getting iron from meat, but get little bits from lots of different sources. It adds up.

You could also look at iron-fortified cereals and breads.

Iron is one of my struggles as well. I just take a daily multi vitamin now so that is isn't a concern and eat a few dried apricots.

Oh, also calcium and tannins inhibit iron absorption, vitamin c aids it

.

Shellfish.

Clams and oysters are iron rich!

Add vitamin c or citrus juice to every meal or at least your high iron meals to increase absorption. Molasses and prunes are also high in iron.

Some breads have lots of iron in them. Worth looking into. Even the cheap ones etc

Lentils, black beans, chick peas, mung beans, that sort of thing. Could add them to soups and other recipes to bulk up your iron count without really changing the flavour

You can also buy iron supplements, like Spartone or other brands, which help maintain a decent iron level once you've achieved it. They're available without prescription and they aren't as harsh on your stomach as iron pills can be. You just take one dose every other day or each day to top up your intake.

Iron replacement tablets can be taken on an ongoing basis (usually decreased to one per day) to help keep levels in check. They can be bought OTC for cheaper than the prescription charge (in the UK).

If you purchase Hershey's Special Dark Cocoa Powder it has 10% DV per tbsp of iron and 10 calories. I add this to my coffee. It's pretty good. Also you can use blackstrap molasses it has 15% DV per tbsp of iron and 60 calories. I use this as sweetener in my tea. If I have oatmeal or something like that, I will use Blackstrap molasses to sweeten it.

KarenJanine wrote: »

Iron replacement tablets can be taken on an ongoing basis (usually decreased to one per day) to help keep levels in check. They can be bought OTC for cheaper than the prescription charge (in the UK).

Iron Replacement tablet have some side effects. Constipation and it turning out BLACK when it arrives !!!

MARMITE

Cream of wheat has 11%

(Be warned, there are probably some Cheerios jokes coming...it's no reflection on you, OP.)

Dark green veggies, red meat (beef and lamb), liver, eggs.

If you end up needing a supplement, ask for a prescription one. I had some funky anemia during my last pregnancy, and was given Hematogen Forte, which is a rather large capsule but doesnt tend to offer the same nasty side effects as other supplements.

One issue with taking iron supplements or food that is fortified with iron is that there are a lot of less famous but also very important micronutrients, and if a food is high in iron it is often high in many other micronutrients, including those that are less well known. Information about these is scattered all over the place, but one source is in the book "Why Isn't My Brain Working" by Kharrazian... this isn't just for people thinking about brain stuff though, these micronutrients often affect all sorts of cell function and systemic health. So if you can get your iron through whole foods, you are most likely covering all sorts of nutritional bases. Of course there are times when iron supplements are needed and worth it--just want to put that out there. And now I'm going to eat some quite decent homemade beef liver pate on apple slices...

Spheee wrote: »

One issue with taking iron supplements or food that is fortified with iron is that there are a lot of less famous but also very important micronutrients, and if a food is high in iron it is often high in many other micronutrients, including those that are less well known. Information about these is scattered all over the place, but one source is in the book "Why Isn't My Brain Working" by Kharrazian... this isn't just for people thinking about brain stuff though, these micronutrients often affect all sorts of cell function and systemic health. So if you can get your iron through whole foods, you are most likely covering all sorts of nutritional bases. Of course there are times when iron supplements are needed and worth it--just want to put that out there. And now I'm going to eat some quite decent homemade beef liver pate on apple slices...

Seems legit.

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