Raising Iron

disawell

Hi all, I need to up my iron intake and I'd prefer to do it with real food (dont say greens PLEASE) what foods do you eat to raise it? I seem to be ok on days I use shakes, but I want to learn about real food too and I'd prefer not to take supplements. Feel free to add me or check out my food diary. Cheers.

JUDDDing

Happily - meat is a great source of iron.

disawell

What sort of meat and does mince help or am i kidding myself with that one? HAHA i also cant eat a steak every night!

KelleyRob

Chia seeds. Search on here or pinterest for chia seeds. :flowerforyou:

DizzyLinds

Liver is full of iron

msbunnie68

You can track your iron intake on MFP but be warned: a lot of user entries don't have the iron content entered so it can be tricky to do so. I track my iron on here and I edit the entries that I know contain iron (ahhh google is my friend) to add in the iron.

Meats - particularly red, GREENS lol.., dried apricots,strawberries and even pumpkin seeds contain some iron.
Here are a list of iron rich foods:

•Lean meat (beef, veal, lamb and pork)
•Liver, Kidney and heart are particularly rich sources
•Chicken, other poultry and fish
•Ready-to-eat breakfast cereals
•Rolled oats, rice and pasta
•Bread
•Legumes (baked beans, dried peas, beans and lentils)
•Potatoes and vegetables, particularly peas, beans and broad beans
•Dried Fruit

You can look at iron fortified breakfast cereals and breads to help boost your levels in unexpected ways.

tryclyn

Frosted Mini Wheats have 90% RDA of iron.

mklassy123

Fish and shellfish are good sources of iron. Beans too. I try to add beans to at least two meals a day, ie I throw beans in my eggs in the morning, in salads, etc... I also am having trouble getting in enough iron into my diet, even with fish, beans, greens, etc... I bit the bullet and I take a multivitamin now as I was also low in calcium and Vitamin D (the vit D deficiency was according to a blood test). I do have to say that since I starting taking the vitamin and am now getting enough iron, or even more (but not a dangerous amount) - I feel SO MUCH BETTER! I have more energy, I wake up not tired in the mornings - it's pretty amazing.

kimmymayhall

Red meat, organ meat, clams (and other shellfish to a lesser degree), dark greens, dried apricots, and legumes are good for iron. Some beans have more iron and than others and lentils are even better. Iron in meat is more easily absorbed than from fruit/veg/grain sources. Vitamin C helps iron absorption from non-meat sources and calcium, tea, coffee hinder it. I try to eat some red bell pepper or other high Vit C food with my iron rich meals and try to wait about am jour after breakfast to have coffee or tea. But I still take milk with my iron enriched cereal, have to try to find a balance. There are lost of iron rich foods lists and tips you can find with Google.

like_milk

Often the database doesn't list iron in items where there is plenty of iron, incase you're worrying about your numbers there. If you're eating meat you shouldn't have a problem unless you're suffering from a medical condition making you anaemic.

Things you can add to your diet to improve it:

Liver is the best source of iron.
Dried herbs such as thyme (the best) contain a lot of iron.
Also, bran flakes!

bellaphira

a SUPER easy way to start boosting your iron intake is cook with cast iron (this was actually recommended by my midwife when I was pregnant). We switched out pretty much all our cookware for cast iron and our iron levels have been awesome....plus nothing beats grilled cheese on a cast iron skillet YUM! Bonus: cast iron will LAST (lifetimeS) and you can usually find super cheap cast iron at the thrift store, garage sales, antique stores (and sometimes on Craigslist/Freecycle). A lot of times you'll have to re-season it, but it's not difficult. Just my two cents!

mfpcopine

A doctor told me to cook my food in a cast iron skillet.


Incidentally, there's nothing wrong with taking iron supplements for a limited period of time to get your number up. I had anemia and had to go on them for three or four months.

BarackMeLikeAHurricane

Just about every cereal is fortified with cereal. Eat a bowl of total.

disawell

Thanks everyone! I have decided to take a supplement (it stayed down, they usually don't) for the time being as yes i am at risk of anameia due to a medical condition. anyone know what happens if you have too much? does your body just get rid of it?