Iron

Options
sarahtrust
sarahtrust Posts: 85 Member
in Food and Nutrition
How do you get enough iron in your diet?

Replies

  • jgnatca
    jgnatca Posts: 14,464 Member
    Options
    I take a pill, with Vitamin C. I eat beef. I hear raisin bran and raisins are good too.
  • NovusDies
    NovusDies Posts: 8,940 Member
    Options
    My wife recently went through a deficiency and the doctor says that the iron supplements will make very little impact (if any) and beef and/or liver is the way to go. Of course, that is only one doctor's opinion.
  • Maxxitt
    Maxxitt Posts: 1,281 Member
    Options
    I don't meet the recommended 9 mg every day but it pretty well averages out over a week or two. There are a lot of websites that list good sources of iron. Vitamin C aids absorption especially useful for veg sources. Most breakfast cereals are fortified. And I use cast-iron for a lot of cooking and roasting.
  • vallary14
    vallary14 Posts: 215 Member
    Options
    I don’t eat beef or other four legged animals, I eat my greens which are also a good source of vitamin C. Nuts and legumes are also high in iron but not well absorbed without pairing with a food that contains vitamin C. Dried fruits like raisins, dates and apricots are also good sources. I occasionally take a multivitamin that contains iron for a couple days around my cycle. I’ve never been anemic and I haven’t eaten beef in nearly twenty years.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,049 Member
    Options
    If your doc told you you're deficient or anemic, then he/she will probably have medical solutions.

    Grains and leafy greens are good. At 1700 calories a day I rarely hit the goal and I really try, but I'm not anemic.

    There are lists of iron-rich foods on your Google. :)
  • mywayroche
    mywayroche Posts: 218 Member
    Options
    Lentils and red meat. I used to put blackstrap molasses in my coffee before I stopped sugaring everything outside of a dessert trolly
  • Chunkahlunkah
    Chunkahlunkah Posts: 373 Member
    edited April 2018
    Options
    NovusDies wrote: »
    My wife recently went through a deficiency and the doctor says that the iron supplements will make very little impact (if any) and beef and/or liver is the way to go. Of course, that is only one doctor's opinion.

    I wonder what his reasoning was for that? My doctor said the opposite when I was badly deficient, that the level of meat I'd need to eat to recover would be unrealistic. Perhaps she had a very mild deficiency?

    If anyone here's been diagnosed as iron deficient by their dr and is looking for a good iron supplement, my nurse friend recommended ferrous gluconate to me. There are other varieties of iron but she learned from a dr she's friends with who's very experienced with the issue that gluconate absorbs the best. My own doctor hadn't recommended that kind, and I didn't see much of an improvement in my numbers until I switched to gluconate. Please don't supplement though unless you've had your iron levels fully tested by your doctor. :)
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
    Options
    sarahtrust wrote: »
    How do you get enough iron in your diet?

    Keep in mind that foods in the database may be missing some data, not everyone puts in a complete nutritional profile.

    That said, I struggle with iron myself. Many cold cereals are iron fortified, Grapenuts are my go to. As already mentioned vitamin C helps with absorption. But calcium has the opposite effect.

    Many multivitamins (with a child proof cap) contain iron. Too much iron can be dangerous.
  • Chunkahlunkah
    Chunkahlunkah Posts: 373 Member
    Options
    OP - If you're concerned that you're not getting enough iron based on MFP reports, many entries are incomplete so are not listing iron levels in foods. So your total for the day is likely higher than what MFP says. I don't use MFP to measure anything other than macros and fiber (and even with those, I double check that the entry is correct and have had to add my own when they're not).

    If you're just wondering about this in general, then I'd go with your favorite foods that are included on "high iron" lists. As others have said, vitamin C eaten at the same time help with absorption. I've always been mildly anemic (and probably mildly iron deficient too, but that doesn't get tested on a standard physical). I didn't become badly anemic and iron deficient though until after I'd had IBS for a couple of years. I had to stop eating lots of veg during that time, and I think the loss of spinach in particular is what pushed me towards deficiency. Although I love red meat and sometimes have phases where I eat it a few times a week, it's more common for me to go quite a while w/o it (a month or two). It's not deliberate, just happens. So I've made an effort to make sure I eat it more often.
  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 9,996 Member
    Options
    TeaBea wrote: »
    sarahtrust wrote: »
    How do you get enough iron in your diet?

    Keep in mind that foods in the database may be missing some data, not everyone puts in a complete nutritional profile.

    Also, OP, if you're basing your concern on not hitting 100% for iron in your MFP logging, you should realize that 100% on food labels is based on the iron needed by women in their reproductive (pre-menopausal) years and, based on your mention of a husband of 50 years in your profile, I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that, even if you were a child bride, you're not pre-menopausal. Post-menopausal women only need 44% of the iron that pre-menopausal women need.
  • dangerousdashie
    dangerousdashie Posts: 119 Member
    Options
    Crown Prince Wild Caught Baby Boiled Clams & Beef Liver
    I’m never under my iron
  • fittocycle
    fittocycle Posts: 825 Member
    Options
    Make sure that you combine a food high in iron with one high in vitamin C (such as spinach and strawberries in a salad). The vitamin C helps you absorb the iron better. Also, be aware that calcium and iron can fight each other for absorption too. I had very low ferritin and after trying several supplements, I found an iron supplement made from plant sources that really did the trick for me. Keep in mind that it takes months for your body to recoup the iron reserves so please be patient. And never take a supplement without having your doctor monitor your iron levels. Too much iron in your body can be dangerous.
  • mmapags
    mmapags Posts: 8,934 Member
    Options
    Plenty. My doctor told me the iron count in my blood work was actually a little high.

Categories