Nutrition: Iron
I am not a nutritionist but I do try best to eat healthy that I get all of the nutrients that I need. Lately I feel like I haven't been focusing on eating enough iron. Not that I ever focus on getting enough of anything. I really just eat what I think tastes good. Which is a lot of vegetables and fruit and all of that stuff. LOL. But I have been feeling a little down lately. I don't know if it's because I am not getting enough iron (because that is actually a symptom of iron deficiency) or just because I am in a bad mood for no apparent reason (sometimes you're just in a bad mood because you're in a bad mood and that's it). Anyways, I have been reading up a little bit about iron and what I should and shouldn't eat to get the daily recommended dose of 15mg per day.
A few shocking things that I didn't know is that your body only absorbs about 5-10% of the iron that's in your food and some foods can actually help you absorb the iron that's in your food and some can reduce the uptake. I did not know this so it is really shocking to me. I have always thought and believed that when it says on the label something contains 14g of something your body will absorb all of this 14g. Well, I guess that I have been living a lie. For example tea, coffee, chocolate and wine (three out four things that I love) are a few of those things that will reduce the uptake of iron. Vitamin-C and copper can help your body absorb iron.
Women should eat about 15mg/ day, men should eat 9-10mg/ day, and children should eat 5-11mg/ day. Some signs of iron deficiency are fatigue and anaemia. If you excises a lot I mean if your an athlete you should eat 5-7mg more iron and vegetarians should eat a shocking 80% more iron.
Here is a list of some foods that have a lot of iron: soybeans, lentils, almonds, oats, peanuts, reindeer, flaxseed, parsley and sesame seeds.
your writer, Erika
Since I do not have a superbrain here are my sources incase you feel like fact checking everything I just wrote:
http://www.halsosidorna.se/Jarn.htm
http://www.mittval.se/vitaminer-mineraler/mineraler/jarn-fe/
A few shocking things that I didn't know is that your body only absorbs about 5-10% of the iron that's in your food and some foods can actually help you absorb the iron that's in your food and some can reduce the uptake. I did not know this so it is really shocking to me. I have always thought and believed that when it says on the label something contains 14g of something your body will absorb all of this 14g. Well, I guess that I have been living a lie. For example tea, coffee, chocolate and wine (three out four things that I love) are a few of those things that will reduce the uptake of iron. Vitamin-C and copper can help your body absorb iron.
Women should eat about 15mg/ day, men should eat 9-10mg/ day, and children should eat 5-11mg/ day. Some signs of iron deficiency are fatigue and anaemia. If you excises a lot I mean if your an athlete you should eat 5-7mg more iron and vegetarians should eat a shocking 80% more iron.
Here is a list of some foods that have a lot of iron: soybeans, lentils, almonds, oats, peanuts, reindeer, flaxseed, parsley and sesame seeds.
your writer, Erika
Since I do not have a superbrain here are my sources incase you feel like fact checking everything I just wrote:
http://www.halsosidorna.se/Jarn.htm
http://www.mittval.se/vitaminer-mineraler/mineraler/jarn-fe/
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