Should I take an iron supplement?
sarah7591
Posts: 415 Member
When I read my nutritional analysis on MFP dairy I am always low on iron. I usually don't even get to the 50% amount. I am 63 and do take a "mature" multivitamin but it does not contain iron. I am a vegetarian and do not eat meat so I cannot get my iron through that. I am wondering if I should be taking a supplement? Do I even need extra iron at my age? Do you all meet your iron daily requirements on MFP app? Thanks in advance for reading this.
1
Replies
-
Hi Sarah, I am also a vegetarian, 61 and yes I run low on iron. I take an iron supplement that is chelated for quick-absorption. Plus, I cook as much of my food as I can in a cast-iron skillet. "You'll get best results by cooking moist, acidic foods like applesauce, chili, tomato sauce, stew, and scrambled eggs. As a rough rule of thumb, one cup of these foods will gain about six to eight milligrams of iron after being cooked in cast iron cookware." https://runnersconnect.net/cast-iron-pan-iron0
-
Hi Sarah, I am also a vegetarian, 61 and yes I run low on iron. I take an iron supplement that is chelated for quick-absorption. Plus, I cook as much of my food as I can in a cast-iron skillet. "You'll get best results by cooking moist, acidic foods like applesauce, chili, tomato sauce, stew, and scrambled eggs. As a rough rule of thumb, one cup of these foods will gain about six to eight milligrams of iron after being cooked in cast iron cookware." https://runnersconnect.net/cast-iron-pan-iron
Thank you TaosLiz! How do you know if the iron supplement is chelated? Will it say that on the bottle?
0 -
You are welcome Sarah7591, and yes all Chelated supplements are marked as such.0
-
You are welcome and thank you for the Welcoming me to MFP. I am really excited and even more so since I have lost 5 pounds since I began 10 days ago. The Food calculator is teaching me so much by breaking down the foods so that I can see exactly where I have been going wrong.0
-
Have you had blood tests to assess your iron level? Iron is one of the things that it's good to test, before turning to a supplement. How we (older women) metabolize iron can change as we age**, which makes a difference. USDA says vegetarians ought to get 1.8x more iron than meat-eaters** because of the difference in bioavailability of heme vs. non-heme iron, but I'm long-term vegetarian and my blood levels have been fine (I'm 65).
** Points explained in https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Iron-HealthProfessional/1 -
Good point AnnPT77. I never qualify to donate blood at the blood drives at work because my iron levels are a little low. I am usually just a little low (they usually try to test it 2-3 times). I want to say it should be 12 and mine is 11. That has been several years ago because after being declined several times I just stopped trying. With COVID this year I did not get my yearly physical but at this point I think I may just make the appointment because I don't know when I will be able to get a vaccine
I wonder if maybe I should just take a small dose? 1 -
Good point AnnPT77. I never qualify to donate blood at the blood drives at work because my iron levels are a little low. I am usually just a little low (they usually try to test it 2-3 times). I want to say it should be 12 and mine is 11. That has been several years ago because after being declined several times I just stopped trying. With COVID this year I did not get my yearly physical but at this point I think I may just make the appointment because I don't know when I will be able to get a vaccine I wonder if maybe I should just take a small dose?
I don't know, I'm sorry to say. You could try asking in the main part of the Community. There are some health professionals and and people with low iron who know more about stuff like that, who post in the Community, but I don't know whether any are members of this over-50 women group.1
