Do I need to take iron tablets?

rougenoire

I eat quite well with lean meat, fish, veg, whole grains and fruit all playing a regular part but tracking my food here I notice I very rarely get anything like enough iron. I guess this is partly because I don't eat the processed, but vitamin and mineral enriched, cereal that many people rely on for this. I love spinach but it's not physically possible to eat enough to get all the iron I would need and I try not to eat red meat too often in general replacing it with quorn mince.

So should I take iron supplements or is there a better way to add the iron back in to my diet?

like_milk

If you are relying on just what MFP says your iron intake is then it will not be very accurate due to the fact many of the foods simply don't have their iron content listed.

If you are worried about iron then I would see a doctor and get your blood tested. It's quite unusual to have an iron deficiency based on your diet but you can have problems with your iron for reasons that don't just pertain to diet.

The biggest question should be do you have signs of anemia? Tiredness, dizziness, weakness, hair-loss? In which case you will need a diagnosis.

If you want more iron in your diet certain dried herbs are very high in iron and easy to sneak into your diet. Also try to consume vitamin C rich food along with those rich in iron to aid absorption.

rougenoire

I never thought about herbs, to be honest I don't log them as the calories are so small for the faff of finding them in the database here but it is good to know that there are other sources of iron that I hadn't been even paying attention to. I think I might get some pure cocoa to add to my morning oats

likemeinvisible

Adults don't need to consume iron unless they have some illness that causes them to lose iron, too much iron is toxic. We absorb it all back from the intestine and carry stores of it. Women lose a miniscule amount in the cycle but that is replenished on a normal diet. If you eat meat you shouldn't be deficient.

likemeinvisible

Adults don't need to consume iron unless they have some illness that causes them to lose iron, too much iron is toxic. We absorb it all back from the intestine and carry stores of it. Women lose a miniscule amount in the cycle but that is replenished on a normal diet. If you eat meat you shouldn't be deficient.

rougenoire

Thanks, supplements seem to cause a lot of controversy. I figure I should get most of what I need through diet but that didn't seem to be the case. I don't have particular symptoms so I may mention it next time I see my GP.