So I visited the dietitian this morning, and we had a nice discussion about an iron-rich diet. For those who may be interested, I will divide my comments into two categories (between the two kinds of iron.) First, there are two kinds of iron we can consume: 1)HEME Iron (from animal sources) and 2) Non-HEME Iron (from all other sources).
HEME Iron is more readily absorbed by our bodies, because it doesn't have to be transformed by our bodies at all. It comes from animal sources, and things like beef tenderloin, sardines, dark meat on poultry, and tuna are richest in iron. My dietitian recommended at least one serving from one of those I mentioned EVERY DAY.
Non-HEME Iron can be found in plant-based products. These can include: iron-fortified cereals, dark leafy greens, apricots, etc. However, our bodies do NOT readily absorb this kind of iron. It lacks an electron. So, a chemical reaction has to occur before our bodies can absorb it. Most of this kind of iron is flushed from the body during digestion. However, if this is your main source of iron, there are a couple of things you can do. 1) Eat a lot of it! (My dietitian suggested 2-3 servings a day.) 2) Eat these sources of iron with a good source of Vitamin C. The vitamin C lends electrons to the Non-HEME iron, making our bodies more able to absorb it. So...if you're going to eat a bowl of total, for example, drink some OJ or eat strawberries with it. You have to be careful as well -- high-fiber foods make it harder for our bodies to extract iron. (Just how it goes.)
Hope this is helpful for some of us!
Love you all, and feel free to comment or post questions. I'm seeing her again next week, so I can totally follow-up officially.
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