List Of Foods High In Iron Every Anemic Person Should Eat
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Feeling constantly tired and weak? You’re not alone—anemia affects millions, and the solution might be as simple as what you put on your plate.
Anemia, often caused by iron deficiency, can leave you feeling drained and unable to keep up with daily life. The good news is that the right foods can make a huge difference.
We’ll give you a list of iron rich foods for anemia that will help you boost your iron levels. After that, we’ll tell you how to increase iron levels quickly, your daily iron intake, the best way to ensure you absorb the iron you eat, what to avoid when trying to improve your iron and more. Plus, here👇 is a FREE ANEMIA BUNDLE you should print and keep in your kitchen to simplify your iron-increasing journey.
List Of Iron Rich Foods For Anemia
Lentils
Mussels
Beef (especially organ meats like liver)
Sunflower Seeds
Spinach
Thyme
Chickpeas
Shrimp
Pumpkin Seeds
Oysters
Quinoa
Parsley
Kidney Beans
Black Beans
Apricots
Brussel Sprouts
Chicken
Raisins
Tuna
Salmon
Turkey
Broccoli
Anemia Symptoms and Why Iron is Important
Anemia occurs when there are not enough healthy red blood cells to carry oxygen to different parts of the body.
There are different types, but each type brings the same problem: your blood cannot carry enough oxygen around your body.
Here, we’re talking about the anemia due to low iron.
Where iron comes into all of this is that it plays a big part in keeping your red blood cells healthy.
Iron helps get oxygen to different parts of your body, gives your cells energy, supports your immune system and brain, and more.
Having little oxygen going around your body is similar to saying your body can not breathe properly, so any little air it gets will be used for what is most important, and everything else (like your hair and nails) can wait. Since a person with anemia doesn’t have enough oxygen going around their body because they’re low in iron, they usually have some or all of the following symptoms:
Fatigue/weakness
Shortness of breath
Dizziness/lightheadedness
Pale/sallow skin *
Cold hands and feet
Brittle nails
Headache
Difficulty concentrating/ feeling mentally foggy
Craving things that aren’t food, like ice or clay (in some cases)
*(If you have darker skin, look at the palms of your hands. If the dark lines on them are getting lighter, this is a symptom. You can also pull your lower eyelid down to see if the bottom, which should be slightly red, is pale. This is also a symptom.)
When it gets severe, the symptoms are:
Chest pain/angina
Rapid/irregular heartbeat
Difficulty breathing even at rest
Jaundiced skin
Fainting/loss of consciousness
Severe fatigue or weakness that disturbs their daily routine
Acne might get worse (because the immune system is weaker, and this weakness can also cause other infections like candida)
Red, painful cracks at the corners of the mouth (sometimes with swelling)
Tongue might turn very red, look glossy, and be painful (especially with intense foods flavors like spicy foods)
Restless leg syndrome (where your leg feels almost tingly and causes you to have difficulty sleeping)
General itchiness all over your body or one part of your body (might seem like it’s nothing, but it can mean something even worse than anemia)
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Why You Are Low in Iron
Sometimes, the reason is that you might not be eating enough iron-containing foods.
It could also be that you have a disease like celiac disease, IBD (inflammatory bowel disease), or bad gut health in general that prevents you from absorbing the iron in the food you eat, or you might be chronically bleeding somewhere inside your body (for example, you might be internally bleeding or have very very heavy periods).
It may also be that your body needs a lot more iron than usual because you’re going through a time in your life when you’re growing quickly, like when you’re growing from a child to a teenager, or maybe you’re going through pregnancy, and your body is constantly changing because of the child growing inside of you.
The two other possible things are that you have a disease affecting your iron.
For example, kidney disease or certain types of cancer can affect how your body deals with iron.
Diseases like hemochromatosis cause your body to absorb and store way too much iron, which damages your organs (especially the liver) and puts everything out of order.
Even though you have a lot of iron, in this case, you technically aren’t getting enough because it’s not being used properly.
The other reason is donating blood too often.
Don’t downplay iron deficiency because it can lead to serious health problems if left uncured.
This is very important for people who voluntarily avoid meat. They can sometimes be in denial and continue only taking iron supplements (which are fine but may not work for them) until the problem gets severe.
The 2 Main Types of Iron Foods
You have two types of iron that you get from food:
Heme—You get this from animal products like meat, poultry, and fish, and your body absorbs it well.
Non-heme—You get these from plant foods like beans, lentils, spinach, fortified cereals, and iron supplements, and your body doesn’t absorb them as easily as hemic.
Poll
Your Daily Iron Intake
Exactly how much iron you should take per day, your doctor will let you know, but IT IS SO IMPORTANT for you to remember that it’s not just about taking the iron; it’s also about HOW YOU TAKE IT, and this is what you need to remember:
For your body to better absorb the iron, you can take it on an empty stomach or with a small amount of food.
When you’re taking iron (whether in food or with an iron supplement), take it with something that has vitamin C in it, like (fruits with vitamin C, etc…); if you take iron supplements, you might find ones online that already comes with the vitamin C like the one linked below.
A pro tip, which is optional, is to try cooking in cast iron pans like the one linked below because they’re made of iron, and cooking with them adds a bit of iron to your food.
Iron Supplement with Vitamin C
180 Capsules
Utopia Kitchen Saute fry pan - Pre-Seasoned Cast Iron Skillet
Set 3-Piece
Things to Avoid When Taking Iron
Just as you need to know how to take iron so you get the maximum absorption you can get, it’s also important for you to know what to avoid when you’re taking iron:
You want to stay clear of foods with high calcium for at least 2 hours after taking iron because calcium doesn’t work well with iron, especially if that iron is coming from plant foods (non-hemic iron foods)
Don’t take iron with antacids or with foods that have tannins (tannin is just something natural that’s in things like tea and coffee)
Try not to combine a high fiber meal with the iron you’re taking, as this can interfere with your ability to absorb the iron.
RELATED POST: 33 Foods High In Fiber That Can Help You With Constipation
You want to stay clear of all of these for at least 2 hours after taking your iron from either the food you eat or from any iron supplements you take.
Tips for Creating Good Iron-Packed Meals
Sometimes, it’s tempting to think that iron should be in everything you eat, but remember that you have to be balanced because your body needs other things as well.
You don’t want to finish stocking up on iron to find you’re low on something else.
Here are some tips:
Include meat, poultry, and fish in your food throughout the week.
Always combine eating plant foods (like the ones in our list of foods high in iron) with vitamin C-rich fruits and vegetables.
Try to use your cast iron pans a lot when cooking.
Drink water when you’re thirsty because water helps you absorb nutrients better.
FAQ
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Beetroot Juice
Prune Juice
Cacao Powder - you can use it in your smoothies or food.
Any smoothie you can make with fruits or vegetables that are high in iron.
Some teas, like nettle, dandelion, and herbal teas, can be high in iron.
However, you have to remember that teas and coffee have something in them called tannins, and this doesn’t help with iron absorption, so it cancels itself out.
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They do have iron, but they’re not high in iron compared to meat, chicken (poultry), and fish.
The iron in eggs is also the plant type (non-hemic), which your body doesn’t absorb well.
You might rarely find some sites that say it’s (hemic), but a test was done to see how much eggs affect children's iron levels, and it didn’t do much for them.
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There aren’t any iron rich foods specifically for females.
All the foods in the list of foods high in iron benefit females, males, and children.
Infographic
Conclusion
Living with anemia is tiring and slows you down during many activities. Simply eating the right foods is not enough. You have to know how to eat them and what to pair them with, like Vitamin C, which enhances iron absorption in your body, for your body to absorb the iron you need for energy. You should also avoid the foods we mentioned while taking iron so you don’t stump your recovery.
Take the Next Step: Heavy periods can sometimes be the cause of your anemia. Find out the foods that not only help with your anemia during that time but also with period pain and symptoms in our post Iron Rich Foods That Help Relieve Your Period Symptoms.
Let Us Know: How long did it take you to get your iron levels back up?
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