Iron Rich Foods - Any Suggestions?

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leonaedithlewis
leonaedithlewis Posts: 75 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I am routinely well under the RDA of Iron every day. I am not anemic, but I'd like to know how to eat real foods to get my essential nutrients. Any suggestions?
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  • aimforhealthy
    aimforhealthy Posts: 449 Member
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    Me too on this. I've started trying to include one iron-rich food into every meal - kale, sesame seeds, dried apricots - and drinkign fortified OJ. Even a little goes a long way. I learned a lot on this website: http://www.ironrichfood.org/
  • ScottishMrs
    ScottishMrs Posts: 254 Member
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    Do you eat meat? Meat always helps with that if you eat it/can afford it.

    Also, oatmeal has a bit, molasses is high, spinach and kale, squash, nuts, beans, whole grains. I often used a fortified cereal to boost my iron up but make sure to measure the serving because cereal is deceptive.

    Also, it might be worthwhile noting that the RDA for iron is a generic number (14mg) and each person requires a different amount based on their age and gender. (Here's a quick reference: http://www.healthlinkbc.ca/healthfiles/hfile68c.stm. I can't find the original site I saw the info on.)

    Don't forget to include what's in your multivitamin if you take one.
  • thefiddlerscall
    thefiddlerscall Posts: 7
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    Apparently, red meat. But if you are a vegetarian (like me!) Dark leafy greens and dried beans have a surprising amount of iron (more per calorie than meat!). Also, DON'T forget to get enough vitamin C because that helps absorb the iron in plants. :)
  • leonaedithlewis
    leonaedithlewis Posts: 75 Member
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    Great ideas. I like the vegetarian suggestions. I eat red meat, but not very often. Thanks!
  • CaffeinatedConfectionist
    CaffeinatedConfectionist Posts: 1,046 Member
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    Dark leafy greens, meat. Whenever I feel like I've been particularly low in iron, I eat some liver, which I am fortunate enough to actually really like. Definitely don't have any trouble hitting the RDA of iron on those days!
  • angieleighbyrd
    angieleighbyrd Posts: 989 Member
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    spinach...lots and lots of spinach.

    or steak....
  • melindasuefritz
    melindasuefritz Posts: 3,509 Member
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    spinach
  • calculustiger
    calculustiger Posts: 39
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    This probably doesn't apply to you, but if you both live near a Wegmans and like chicken sausage, then Wegmans Fully Cooked Sundried Tomato and Basil Chicken Sausage has 35% DV of Iron per link (though I still have no idea why it is so high).
  • beckizzle
    beckizzle Posts: 118 Member
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    don't forget your vitamin c... you can be eating all the red meat and kale in the world and without vitamin c you can't convert it from ferric to ferrous for your body to absorb
  • peachfigs
    peachfigs Posts: 831 Member
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    Dark green vegetables, especially spinach. You may benefit from a liquid iron supplement too.
  • bumblebums
    bumblebums Posts: 2,181 Member
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    Some people have problems absorbing iron from certain sources. So if you want to be sure you are getting enough, make sure you eat a variety of iron-rich foods (dark leafy greens and meat).
  • peachfigs
    peachfigs Posts: 831 Member
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    Some people have problems absorbing iron from certain sources. So if you want to be sure you are getting enough, make sure you eat a variety of iron-rich foods (dark leafy greens and meat).

    This is true. Also, if you drink a lot of tea, that may not help. The tannin in the tea makes it difficult for the body to absorb iron.
  • bumblebums
    bumblebums Posts: 2,181 Member
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    Some people have problems absorbing iron from certain sources. So if you want to be sure you are getting enough, make sure you eat a variety of iron-rich foods (dark leafy greens and meat).

    This is true. Also, if you drink a lot of tea, that may not help. The tannin in the tea makes it difficult for the body to absorb iron.

    Correct! Both coffee and tea interfere with micronutrient absorption so you have to be careful... And that link that ScottishMrs posted has very useful information about iron.

    Oh, fun fact time: if your pee turns reddish after eating beets, it might indicate a problem with iron levels. The condition is called "beeturia".

    http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(05)76638-1/fulltext
  • PaleoPath4Lyfe
    PaleoPath4Lyfe Posts: 3,161 Member
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    I am routinely well under the RDA of Iron every day. I am not anemic, but I'd like to know how to eat real foods to get my essential nutrients. Any suggestions?

    Liver
    Dark green leafy vegetables (spinach, kale, collards, etc)

    I like to eat raw liver.........most people do not.
  • PaleoPath4Lyfe
    PaleoPath4Lyfe Posts: 3,161 Member
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    This probably doesn't apply to you, but if you both live near a Wegmans and like chicken sausage, then Wegmans Fully Cooked Sundried Tomato and Basil Chicken Sausage has 35% DV of Iron per link (though I still have no idea why it is so high).

    They probably grind up chicken liver in the meat mixture.
  • tom_olech
    tom_olech Posts: 139 Member
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    Why not just take a supplement? There are plenty of them out there and they are far from expensive....

    And if not
    - red meats
    - liver
    - beans
    - dark leafy green veggies
    - grains (iron enriched, like cereals and breads, etc.)
    - and artichokes (i think, you may want to google that one)
    - oh, and nuts too!
  • bumblebums
    bumblebums Posts: 2,181 Member
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    Why not just take a supplement? There are plenty of them out there and they are far from expensive....

    And if not
    - red meats
    - liver
    - beans
    - dark leafy green veggies
    - grains (iron enriched, like cereals and breads, etc.)
    - and artichokes (i think, you may want to google that one)
    - oh, and nuts too!

    Micronutrient supplements can be dangerous, actually. You shouldn't take iron, calcium, etc. unless your doctor recommends it based on lab results. As for the foods, you're right on.
  • ahoyyy
    ahoyyy Posts: 2
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    I just found out I am extremely anemic and have been trying to get as many iron rich foods as possible into my diet. Oatmeal, blackstrap molasses, salads made with spinach, steamed broccoli w/ hummus, walnuts, dates, watermelon.
  • leonaedithlewis
    leonaedithlewis Posts: 75 Member
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    Why not just take a supplement? There are plenty of them out there and they are far from expensive....

    And if not
    - red meats
    - liver
    - beans
    - dark leafy green veggies
    - grains (iron enriched, like cereals and breads, etc.)
    - and artichokes (i think, you may want to google that one)
    - oh, and nuts too!

    Micronutrient supplements can be dangerous, actually. You shouldn't take iron, calcium, etc. unless your doctor recommends it based on lab results. As for the foods, you're right on.

    Iron supplements in particular are famous for diarrhea as a side effect. Really undesirable.
  • leonaedithlewis
    leonaedithlewis Posts: 75 Member
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    I just found out I am extremely anemic and have been trying to get as many iron rich foods as possible into my diet. Oatmeal, blackstrap molasses, salads made with spinach, steamed broccoli w/ hummus, walnuts, dates, watermelon.

    Watermelon? I had no idea.

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