More Iron?

Jaclynfc
Jaclynfc Posts: 2 Member
edited July 2018 in Food and Nutrition
Found out I’m low on iron. Today I plan to eat oatmeal with bananas &pb, spinach and tomato salad with tuna, and steak with broccoli. Plugged that into MyFitnessPal and still only at 50% iron for the day but at my calorie goal. Any tips on what I could change out or do better for more iron?

Replies

  • WholeFoods4Lyfe
    WholeFoods4Lyfe Posts: 1,518 Member
    Did your physician recommend taking an Iron Supplement?

    Other than that, cooking in a Cast Iron pan can help add Iron to your diet as well.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,427 MFP Moderator
    Jaclynfc wrote: »
    Found out I’m low on iron. Today I plan to eat oatmeal with bananas &pb, spinach and tomato salad with tuna, and steak with broccoli. Plugged that into MyFitnessPal and still only at 50% iron for the day but at my calorie goal. Any tips on what I could change out or do better for more iron?

    A lot of the entries in MFP aren't correct for the vitamins/minerals.
  • RelCanonical
    RelCanonical Posts: 3,882 Member
    It's possible that the myfitnesspal entries aren't entirely accurate, so double check them against official usda entries. https://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/

    A supplement would help as well. Iron deficiency isn't uncommon in women so there are many options when it comes to vitamin pills.
  • Hamsibian
    Hamsibian Posts: 1,388 Member
    edited July 2018
    I thought I responded to this, but I could have accidentally clicked "done" instead of "reply". So I'll make a list.

    1. Check you're using correct entries (USDA website or an equivalent of you live in another cointry, labels).
    2. Iron supplements.
    3. Routine blood work.
    4. Food: your best options are red meat, poultry, some seafood, eggs, and offal! seriously learn how to like organ meat - they're cheaper and iron powerhouses. Chicken liver is probably a good start since it's mild. Hide it in meatballs or burgers if you have to.
  • fr33sia12
    fr33sia12 Posts: 1,258 Member
    Jaclynfc wrote: »
    Found out I’m low on iron. Today I plan to eat oatmeal with bananas &pb, spinach and tomato salad with tuna, and steak with broccoli. Plugged that into MyFitnessPal and still only at 50% iron for the day but at my calorie goal. Any tips on what I could change out or do better for more iron?

    I'm low in iron too. I have 50g of Branflakes for breakfast, that's about 50% already. I don't eat much meat so take an iron supplement too. Sometimes you just can't get enough from food alone if you don't want to eat too much.
  • Jaclynfc
    Jaclynfc Posts: 2 Member
    Thanks everyone
    I try to avoid supplements as prefer to get it from food but sounds like I’m not able to eat enough to meet my iron needs while trying to loose this last bit of baby weight.
    I’ll also double check the usda amounts before starting supplements
  • georgieamber2
    georgieamber2 Posts: 229 Member
    I'm low iron too but not because I don't eat enough but my body doesn't absorb it well. Try not to drink tea of coffee before / immediately after eating and have orange juice / vitamin c during mealtimes:) x
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    I'm anemic and can't get enough iron from my diet alone. To stay in Low Normal, I eat 100% of the RDA, plus I supplement with 278%. So almost 400% to stay in Low Normal. Plus more when I'm menstruating, including Wellshire Liverwurst; 2 oz = 35% RDA iron.

    It's really important that I get my iron levels tested at least yearly, and more often if my levels fall into Anemic and am working to get them back up.

    Also, there are many forms of iron and the first few I tried did nothing to get my energy levels up. I am currently taking iron bisglycinate. This doesn't give me the constipation or upset stomach side effects that other forms of iron can cause.
  • peaceout_aly
    peaceout_aly Posts: 2,018 Member
    A supplement?
  • Mithridites
    Mithridites Posts: 600 Member
    Wanting to get my iron up I found a couple things high in iron that I actually like. Mussels and dark chocolate.
  • GrumpyHeadmistress
    GrumpyHeadmistress Posts: 666 Member
    Funnily enough I just found out the same thing. Went for a supplement. Teeny tiny pill gives me 100% of RDI. Plus what I eat during the day. So should be ok.

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