Low Iron - looking for advice

NeverGivesUp

beets too. I am unfortunately unable to absorb iron from my food so will start getting iron infusions every month at the end of this month. Absorbing through your food is the best. You can also get a juicer and juice a bunch of beets, spinach, carrots and an orange for absorbtion. I tried everything. No milk or cafeine around eating iron. So if you are going to eat cream of wheat do not eat it with dairy or it will not absorb. Good luck!!

JanieJack

Red meat and green leafy vegetables have a lot of iron, but a good trick is to eat those along with vitamin c (orange juice, tomatoes, etc). The vitamin C naturally helps your body absorb more of the iron from the food. This is a trick I picked up from the American Red Cross.

I agree. Everyone shuns beef these days, but I feel sooooo much better when I eat it. It wasn’t until well into my 30s that I discovered I was borderline anemic.

Laceybaby1967

I use a cast-iron frying pan and teapot. When I gave blood I was told that my iron levels were really good. And steak also :drinker:

^^^This....it's an easy way to get Iron without taking pills......

becoming_a_new_me

I am very anemic, and have managed to get my levels up with a green juice that has spinach, brocolli tops, etc and a beet juice supplement. If you don't want to sit there and eat 12 lbs of veggies every day, either juicing or a juice supplement will help. I mix mine with a vitamin C juice that is orange flavored, and it is very tasty.

NeverGivesUp

eggs have iron in them and do not block iron absorbtion, neither do grains. Just milk and caffeine you should avoid while taking iron for around an hour or so before or afterwards. Quinoa and cinnamon have iron in it too and vitamin c does help with absorbtion.

formersec

Chili. The beans and meat have the iron and the tomatoes/tomato sauce contain Vitamin C to help with absorption.

Nastasha915

Dark green veggies. Spinach, Greens, etc. That's what the doc said to eat around that time of the month to increase iron levels.

ryall70

i did not read through all of the advice but avoid tea, it blocks iron absorption. Take your supplement with oj though

WhitneyAnnabelle

Yeah, caffeine blocks iron absorption. Other than spinach, kale is a really good option (kale rocks). Make some green smoothies. If you have molasses, make sure it's black strap molasses. Good luck!

JeSuisPrest

Chewable Flintstone complete vitamin has 100% iron in it

BigDaddyBRC

If you like meat... EAT


If not...
Dried peaches
Sesame seeds
Pumpkin seeds
Pine nuts
Kidney beans
Quinoa
Asparagus
Sun-dried tomatoes
Molasses
Flaxseed
Oatmeal
Cashew nuts
Seaweed

manda1002

If you take the pills, make sure you take some colace or drink lots of extra water or eat more fiber rich foods. Iron supplements constipate you.

WiegandS

I take the GNC ultra 65 ( i think that's what it's called) The pill itself is about the size of a pencil eraser so it's tiny and won't make me gag lol. I don't know how true this is, but a trainer at my gym said cooked spinach (such as sautéed spinach with garlic and oil) will release the iron and make it more absorbable in your stomach... just some food for thought. I've been anemic since I was 13 and I'm still this way 10 years later so obviously I'm still doing something wrong lol.

obeserat

looks a good website - www.ironrichfood.org

Xaspar

I've had to take iron pills before as well, and I hate them! There are a few natural things you can try that are gentler on your GI system.
Floradix--available at health food stores or you can order it online.
Chlorophyll--a bit less expensive than the Floradix. I got drops and added them to whatever I was drinking.
Stinging nettle--you can order the dried leaf and drink it as a tea or infusion. It's the least expensive of the three, high in just about every nutritent your body needs. But some people don't like the taste (it tastes very..."green"). When I was pregnant, I would mix it 1:1 with oatstraw (also nutrient dense) because oatstraw has a mild, pleasant taste. Honey or stevia can also make it more palateable.

I have used the above mentioned stinging nettle tea myself ... As an idea, maybe in a vanilla protein smoothie with a tablespoon of orange juice concentrate it would be a bit more palatable. Use the tea (chilled) instead of water or milk.