1200 calories and enough iron without supplements?

apwinchester2
apwinchester2 Posts: 11
edited September 21 in Food and Nutrition
Anyone have able to get a full day's suggested iron intake (in addition to proper fiber/protein) on a diet close to 1200 calories with NATURAL iron sources? It seems like unless I eat iron-fortified cereal (which is just vitamin powder in the cereal) or supplements with iron that I can't get even close to the suggested iron intake.

I eat beef and spinach/ or leafy greens daily, and still I'm almost always shy.

Suggestions?

Replies

  • mabella17
    mabella17 Posts: 93
    I am around 1200 calories a day and my doctor had to put me on iron supplements because my iron was so low. There is an over the counter iron supplement you can take, which I have found is doing wonders for my energy level!!!!!
  • belldandy1
    belldandy1 Posts: 264 Member
    I am on 1200 calories and on the days when I eat spinach or kale i always get enough iron.
  • sabrinafaith
    sabrinafaith Posts: 607 Member
    I take one a day for women and that gives me 100% of my daily iron. I think no matter what your calorie intake is, you should be on a multivitamin. You want to get enough calcium, iron, and vitamin c so you can stay strong and have a healthy immune system.
  • sabrinafaith
    sabrinafaith Posts: 607 Member
    Also, unless you are eating super lean beef, like bison, you really shouldn't be eating beef daily. It just isn't healthy.
  • cocacole77
    cocacole77 Posts: 53
    I also suggest multivitamins! As for beef everyday...my grandparents lived a healthy lifestyle clear into their 90's on beef...with hormones!! Not something you should worry about!
  • megamom
    megamom Posts: 920 Member
    I wasn't tracking my iron but checked when I read this post, way under. I take a senior vitamin but for some reason it is iron free. I thought with all the spinach I eat I would be loaded. Maybe everyone hasn't added in the iron when they post the food?
  • needamulligan
    needamulligan Posts: 558 Member
    Spinach may, actually, inhibit iron absorption. Have you tried smoked oysters or baby clams? 1/3 c has 30% or your daily requirement. Dark meat chicken and chick peas are also good sources. There we go! Another reason to eat hummus!
  • megamom
    megamom Posts: 920 Member
    Ok, the hummus I can do, oysters, blah.
  • kickitlarson
    kickitlarson Posts: 204 Member
    Baby spinach doesn't have oxalic acid which is the iron inhibitor but even if you can just eat it with tomatoes or bell peppers which are iron enhancers and still be fine.

    You really don't need as much of the vitamin & minerals as stated by all the RDA junk. The reason all of this is so inflated is because people are eating all the fortified stuff or taking the vitamins (which companies make more money of off). You can't absorb these as well as whole natural foods. So if you eat the vitamins & mineral in whole natural state you get the perfectly balanced ratio that nature made & its easily digested & used. That's why many people's pee turns bright yellow/green or a strong smell after taking a vitamin - your body is just getting rid of it. If this doesn't happen then your body is just use to the overload.

    If you are getting all of your iron from raw foods then your really only need like 8-10mg. i really wish we could see the amount rather than the percentage here on MFP.
  • apwinchester2
    apwinchester2 Posts: 11
    I do take supliments when I am way under on vitamins or minerals, but I'd rather not take them because - as mindelicious says - there is no way to tell from a supliment how much the body is actually able to absorb. Most natrual sources are much more digestable and useable by the body than their capsule-formed cousins.
    I'm nearing my goal weight, and I would like to use this site to form habits around healthy eating that don't need capsules.

    I like my steamed spinach with redwine vinegar, so I guess I'll do that more often. And eat raw spinach with something to aid iron absorbtion. and keep the kale and other greens - do they need "helpers" for iron absorbition too??
    chick peas and hummus - good for protein and fiber too, I'll see how far that can get me.
    clams and oysters - yum! but more difficult to sell my family on, so maybe I'll keep a canned stash as a treat for the days when I'm running low on iron :)
    And another reason to choose chicken thights over breasts - sweet!

    And then, perhaps if I'm gettting some good iron even if it's shy of 100, if it's reasonable amounts of good natural sources perhaps I'll just be OK not to get 100% RDA of iron.

    Thanks for the advice everyone!
  • kickitlarson
    kickitlarson Posts: 204 Member
    Here's a nice chart breakdown. If you are eating anything in the top category just make sure you pair it with an iron enhancer such as tomatoes, bell peppers, broccoli, brussel sprouts, Orange, Orange Juice, cantaloupe, strawberries, grapefruit.

    Also these foods are best eaten raw to get the benefits. Once a food is heated about 115F it is broken down & no longer usuable by the body and in some cases toxic to the body as elimination in drastically hindered.

    HIGH OXALIC ACID CONTENT:
    Lambsquarters, beet leaves, purslane leaves, spinach, swiss chard (leaves & stalks), rhubarb, parsley, amaranth leaves, sorrel.

    LOW OXALIC ACID CONTENT:
    Dandelion greens, baby spinach, most fruits, kale, watercress, escarole, mustard greens, turnip greens, kale, broccoli, tomatoes, asparagus, cabbage, and most greens not mentioned.
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