The cause? Iron deficiency.

Yes, IRONic even, as the author of this website on food iron.

As I struggle to crawl out of the pit, I realize more than ever some specific problems we may face as we try to get some of this important nutrient into our red blood cells where it belongs.

First, I am part of a growing demographic of the iron deficient: middle-aged overweight women. What researchers are beginning to realize is that the inflammation caused by our fat reduces our ability to get iron into our cells where it belongs.

Simply, being fat can aggravate (or even cause entirely) an iron deficiency.

So I sit here fluffy and iron deficient. If I can lose fat, I will solve my iron problem faster, but how in the heck can I lose fat if I am too exhausted to get off the couch?

The exhaustion associated with iron deficiency is epic, as you know well if you struggle with an iron deficiency. The idea of working out at the gym and on a calorie restricted diet is simply unrealistic. In my personal experience, we really need a more complex plan to solve our problem.

Weight Loss with an Iron Deficiency

First, losing weight really will help our battle. In one study on my little (or not so little) demographic, the weight loss solution the authors study is bariatric surgery. Bariatric surgery helped women lose weight, reduced the inflammation in their bodies, and actually positively impacted their iron status. (See the study.) Reducing inflammation also protected their hearts, brains, and really their entire bodies — all major diseases have some root in inflammation.

To clarify, I am not an advocate of bariatric surgery — it works for some people and it doesn’t work for others. For my purposes here, if there is any other way to lose, we ought to work on an alternative method. I would not judge anyone harshly (or even mildly) if they had such a surgery. You can find plenty of that judgment all over the Internet, so I figure that job is already overly-staffed.

The key point is that if we can reduce our fat, we will be at lower risk for coronary events, depression, and even iron deficiency.

The Problem of Exercising with an Iron Deficiency

To lose fat in order to solve our iron problem, we have an immediate dilemma: We don’t have energy and we can’t push ourselves through an exercise program.

If you find yourself trying to exercise and wonder what is wrong — why you can’t push yourself through your exercise set or even walk a little bit further — you really aren’t going crazy. Iron deficiency directly affects our physical performance, beyond simply being tired.

I live at the top of a hill and, for years, part of my regular exercise has been walking down to the main road and back up. The “back up the road” was only ever a problem when I was 39 weeks pregnant with snow on the ground. Even then, I worked it out. At the peak of my epic exhaustion from iron deficiency, I could not even push myself through the walk.

Do you know that feeling in an exercise program when you push through and then build up day after day? Depending on your circumstances, that strategy may simply not be possible for you when you are iron deficient. It wasn’t for me.

As I see it, we face two dilemmas:

• How do we get to the point at which we can exercise (even a little bit) so that we can work on weight loss?

• Are calorie restrictions for weight loss even appropriate for someone with a nutritional deficiency?

For my own circumstances, I wondered if I should begin a calorie-restricted diet first to begin to lose and, thereby, improve my iron. However, at least in my case, I would have to restrict calories a I decided on a whole lot to lose without exercising. It’s not a good long-term strategy, especially in light of a mineral deficiency. I decided on a different path, not unlike that investigated in a clinical trial.

From the study, researchers confirm that we are not going crazy, it IS more difficult for us to exercise if you are iron deficient:

Evidence from both animal and human studies suggests that marginal deficiency reduces endurance capacity. Moreover, findings from animal studies also suggest that iron deficiency may impair training adaptation. Findings from human studies examining this relation are equivocal.

The researchers did something pretty simple: They gave a group of the women in their study iron supplements, a control group was given a placebo. Within six weeks, those women taking iron supplements had better physical endurance. (See the study.)

The idea is pretty simple: If we can take the edge off the iron deficiency, we can exercise better, and maybe then actually succeed in a more serious exercise regimen and even a weight loss program.

Phase 1: Focus First on the Iron, then Hit the Exercise

A deficiency will take months to correct, if not a good bit longer. It depends in part of why you are deficient. If the causes are simply dietary, diet changes and supplements could correct it in three months or so — the time in which your body actually makes a whole new set of blood cells, something it works on every day.

Middle aged women like myself may have changes in their cycles as they march toward menopause. Cycles can get heavier, causing regular loss of a lot of blood. Some people have metabolic problems that may be affecting their iron absorption.

Assuming you can get in front of why you are deficient and begin to solve it, your next step is to get your iron levels up enough that you can actually exercise.

How to Improve Your Iron Status?

As I’ve faced this iron problem, I have become extra diligent with my diet, using the various strategies I outline in the Iron Rich Foods digital book. However, I also spent the first six weeks of my program pounding on the iron problem with an iron supplement. I’ve recommended a liquid iron supplement on this site which is vegetarian and well-tolerated by most people. That may be a good option for you, but it is not actually the tool I used.

(In fact, there could be a host of reasons why your case is unique which is why it is important to work with your doctor. I know a lot about food but I am not a medical professional and certainly you need one who knows your individual case.)

If you’ve explored this website, you know that the best food source of iron is red meat and, more specifically, liver. I have taken an insane amount of desiccated liver (here) to combat this deficiency and I am happy to report that I can walk down and then back up our little hill. I went on a five-mile bike ride in the foothills and didn’t even have to stop for a nap in the middle of it.

Take an iron supplement that works for you, but I’ll explain a little bit more why liver is my choice in this instance.

As I said, liver is an excellent source of iron. Furthermore, liver may give us some energy, over and above that we might expect from its nutrient profile. There was actually a study back in the 50s of mice fed liver and they were actually more energetic. The field of “liver eating research” didn’t really continue after that, but I do find from personal experience that I get an energy boost from liver. Eating it fresh is best for my energy but I simply cannot eat it week after week in a recovery program like this. It is not a sustainable choice for me — I get tired of it quickly. When I do tire of it, there is the desiccated liver. If you do eat it fresh, definitely buy only organic liver from a good source.

For my desiccated liver, I used a supplement sourced from Argentina. Argentine beef tends to be grass fed, making the supplement a good quality. Desiccated liver is de-fatted so some of the toxins you may find in this meat are lost with the fat removal. I use a brand whose market is weight lifters hoping to dose a whole lot of iron as part of their muscle-building program. These guys take insane amounts of iron in their training — the supplement they use is perfect for me as well. It is priced for mega-dosing. (Also perfect.)

The best deal on the supplement is at either Amazon or Vitacost (considering shipping is free), priced at about $40 for 500 tablets. (Here at Amazon or at Vitacost.) The Vitacost deal is best if you buy something else and qualify for free shipping. I receive mine in two days. Amazon may work better for you. (Both of those links are referral links and this site receives a small commission if you buy from those vendors.)

In my regimen, I took a whopping 18 tablets a day (6 tablets 3 times a day) for three weeks, all before about 2 p.m. In my experience, liver tablets give me energy in a good way but they can also disturb my sleep if I take them too late in the day.

After three weeks, I reduced my intake to 12 tablets a day, still a whole lot of desiccated liver.

In the first month, I used nearly a whole bottle of those liver tablets I linked to above, for a cost of $41. Taking 12 a day, the cost is about $30 per month.

This is a fairly inexpensive intervention in the grand scheme of things.

After six weeks of this I was able to take that walk and bike ride that I mentioned above.

Phase 2: Once You Can Exercise, Begin Your Weight Loss

Phase 1 was actually pretty easy: pop pills. I am now in the difficult and yet great phase of having enough energy to move my body. The weight loss program begins.

I am not a weight loss guru by any means. If you have a program that works for you, this would be the time to employ it. Based on my life-long experience with weight loss, I have the old-fashioned view that calorie reduction and added exercise is my best strategy. I don’t go on fad diets or restrict my diet completely to a single food group — the old-fashioned method works for me.

I do find that a “diet” takes a good bit of focus and energy — I have to make a lot of room in my life for my dieting. I don’t start one in the middle of a life crisis or life change. I reduce my work schedule as well.

As I begin the dieting and exercise phase, I continue to take the desiccated liver. It gives me iron but, as I mentioned, it seems to give me an additional energy boost. On a calorie-restricted diet, you need any energy boost you can get, especially if you are still teetering on the edge of an iron deficiency. The desiccated liver helps. Your other iron supplement of choice may help as well.

At this point, I’d love to report that I lost 50 pounds (or more!) and that it was all marvelously easy. As it is, I just rode a bike 5 miles in the foothills and walked up a hill, so I cling to that short-term success. I’m now ready for the rest and I will report back. (That’s my car cruising around central California as I hope to grab a bit of exercise.)

If you have comments or suggestions on any phase of our physical transformations, please leave it here.

With spring and summer gardens teaming with produce, more people have been interested in mineral inhibitors in vegetables. Last month I posted about the mineral inhibitor oxalic acid. The article is on the calcium site but the discussion applies equally to iron. Oxalic acid binds to minerals and reduces your absorption of both iron and calcium. Oxalic acid is also implicated in kidney stones. Garden greens tend to have high levels of this iron-binding substance.

We were interested in oxalic acid this spring because of our obsession with green soup (an obsession that lives on since I just had a bowl for breakfast). The greens we used were high in oxalic acid and based on research presented in the article, we chose to boil them first and discard the boiling water. A good portion of the oxalic acid is moved to the boiling water and then is discarded. Certainly, some of the benefits of the greens got poured out along with the oxalic acid, but we were eating so much of it we thought it wise to prevent kidney stones.

Out of the discussion came the question: “Does Fermentation Reduce Oxalic Acid in Food?”

First, this is not a question over which there are legions of food science dissertations. There simply is not a lot of literature on home fermentation.

However, there is a nice little article that suggests fermentation is a great strategy to reduce oxalic acid. A 2005 study of carrot juice examined the soluble iron in fermented and unfermented juice and found the fermented carrot juice to be up to 30 times more absorbed than unfermented juice. The authors argue that it is the reduction in metal chelators (phytic acid and oxalic acid) that drives the change in availability of iron. They actually test for phytic acid and show that it is completely removed with fermentation. Carrots are known high oxalate foods and it is likely that removal of oxalates drives much of this added iron availability.

As a result, the evidence suggests that both fermentation and boiling are fairly effective strategies to reduce oxalic acid in your food. Of course, the key benefit of fermentation is that the food can stay raw, giving you all of the benefits of rawness with the mineral binders.

Should You Worry Or Bother?

The oxalic acid obsession is most important for people relying on oxalate foods for their mineral content or people prone to kidney stones. We took care to reduce oxalic acid in our green soups because we were making gallons of concentrated greenness. Some people have raw green smoothies every day with no issue at all. If that is you — fantastic. There is so much goodness in greens any way that you prepare them, that we all really need to find more ways to eat them that meet our own specific circumstances. Fermentation is just one possibility.

How Do You Ferment Vegetable Juice or Vegetables?

You can ferment your juice or vegetables using a vegetable starter like Caldwell, saving a start from your first batch to inoculate subsequent batches.

You could ferment using whey as a starter. Many people have great success with whey. It is simple and worth a try. I don’t care for the ferments from whey personally.

For vegetable juice, I typically use a water kefir method using first ferment water kefir added to the vegetable juice in a process I describe here using fruit juice instead. It works well for vegetable juice too. I keep water kefir going regularly and so this is the best option in my home.

That said, I would drink high oxalate juice unfermented — I am not a slave to this method. If I were drinking it daily, I would ferment at least some of it, just as I boiled lambs quarters for our green soups. Your mileage may vary — you may need none of these methods, you may be so prone to kidney stones that you choose to avoid these foods entirely.

That said, there is some confusion about iron inhibitors — how much iron they inhibit, how bad these foods are for us to eat. The best way to think about inhibitors is to divide them into two groups: (1) Foods that contain inhibitors with little iron themselves and (2) foods with inhibitors that are also loaded with iron (iron that happens to be “locked up” in the food by the inhibitors).

Low Iron Foods With Iron Inhibitors

This category of food contains primarily beverages: milk, coffee, black tea, and red wine. These beverages typically offer minimal iron but will actually inhibit your absorption of iron in foods you eat in the same meal. Breakfast cereal is a great example: many cereal manufacturers pack your processed breakfast cereal with fortified iron because the milk you pour over it will inhibit some of that iron.

For this group of inhibitors, it is best to avoid consuming them with your iron-rich meal. I realize you are not going to give up your coffee, but you can plan an iron-rich dinner well after your early afternoon cup of coffee. You may also rely on milk for calcium like I do. If you are like me, drink the milk a couple of hours before or after your iron-rich meal. I give my son warm milk at night as a sleep aid and a calcium boost rolled into one.

High Iron Foods With Iron Inhibitors

In this category, we have high iron classics: spinach, soybeans, and corn. The iron in vegetables is blocked primarily by oxalic acid. Phytic acid is the culprit in grains, legumes, nut, and seeds. These foods tend to have enough iron that even with these iron blockers, you will still get iron out of them. They are also not so sinister that they will rob iron out of your body. I would not be afraid to eat these foods, I would just take care to prepare them to reduce their iron inhibitors. How you prepare each of these foods depends on the inhibitor.

Preparing Grains, Legumes, Nuts, and Seeds to Reduce Phytic Acid

The best way to reduce phytic acid in food comes down to one word: soak and ferment. If you place the food in warm water for hours (or even for a day), the content of phytic acid will decrease or may disappear entirely. There are some exceptions for which it is difficult to remove the phytic acid (notably, soy and corn which I will leave to other discussions). For much of the rest of the food world, you can improve the phytic acid reduction by soaking a ground version of the food (cracked or ground grains, chopped nuts). You can also improve your iron absorption by eating these foods with high vitamin C foods such as tomatoes, peppers, and oranges. There are more tricks to improving your iron absorption from high phytic acid food that I will add to this website. The tricks and exceptions are described in detail in my digital books on iron rich foods and phytic acid.

Vegetables High in Oxalic Acid

For vegetables high in oxalic acid, your best strategy is to boil them and discard the boiling water. (I describe the research in more detail here as it relates to calcium but it applies to iron as well.) Eating foods high in vitamin C along with your vegetables may help as well, especially if you are boiling all of the vitamin C out of your spinach.

I get some flack from spinach lovers over this point and the fact is that I am a big fan of raw spinach salads but if you need the spinach for iron, your best strategy is to boil it and eat it mushy. (I know.)

Avoid Iron Inhibitors?

In general, I do not avoid foods just because they contain iron inhibitors. I am enjoying a cup of black tea as I write. However, at the times in my life when I have found myself iron deficient, I do take more care in planning my meals and avoiding iron-inhibiting foods if I cannot prepare them to reduce their phytic acid and oxalic acid. On a daily basis, I prepare much of my high phytic acid food to reduce the phytic acid. The strategies are fairly simple and, ultimately, they reduce my cooking time. It is less of a kitchen obsession than it is a regular routine.

In data collected by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), small vegetables and fruit have declined in iron, calcium, phosphorus, riboflavin, vitamin C, and protein since the 1950s.

Scientists began to notice the trend in the 1980s, a trend that has since been examined in published studies, most notably a series of papers out of the University of Texas at Austin. (Read it here.)

Spinach, washed, pre-cut, and bagged at a grocery store is not your grandmother’s spinach and not just because of its plastic zip lock bag. The spinach is less nourishing as well.

In data housed on the Traditional Foods site, you can explore changes in other foods. Chinese cabbage, cantaloupe, carrots, cauliflower, collard greens, cucumber, honeydew melons, mustard greens, onions, radishes, rhubarb, strawberries, tomato, turnips, and turnip greens all show declines in iron content. These changes in the iron content of individual foods are not statistically significant by themselves but, taken together, they suggest a decline in iron content.

On top of reduced iron, many of these same foods have less vitamin C as well. Vitamin C is an important part of an iron rich diet because it actually helps your body absorb more of the iron in your food. Tomatoes and cantaloupe are popular vitamin C foods and great companions to grain salads and breakfast menus. These popular foods have declined in both iron and vitamin C, making that uphill climb against iron deficiency a bit more strenuous.

Why A Decline? A Trend Toward Commercialized Produce

The most comprehensive study of these data examines possible reasons for the decline in nutritional content of food — soil depletion and changes in the seeds themselves.

Soil depletion is a compelling explanation for the nutrient decline. The idea is that commercial growers have become dependent on fertilizers that focus on nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium (NPK) rather than the whole spectrum of soil nutrients. This has led to deficient soil. Deficient soil creates deficient vegetables. As a gardener myself, I can certainly see a relationship between the health of our soil and the productivity of the garden. This explanation is compelling but researchers point out that protein (from nitrogen) and phosphorus have both declined in these garden crops even though these nutrients are used in commercial fertilizers.

It appears that blame lies with the cultivation of commercial crop varieties that promote high yield and pest resistant plants. When seeds are cultivated to develop a certain trait in the plant (such as yield), other traits may suffer (such as nutrient content). The authors give the example of Marathon broccoli, the type of broccoli commonly available in stores these days. The broccoli head is much larger than heirloom broccoli but any one head has about the same amount of calcium and iron as an heirloom head of broccoli. The minerals get spread throughout the entire large head, leaving a lower mineral content in any one bite of broccoli. You need to eat more bites to get as much iron as calcium as you would have from grandma’s garden.

Buy Heirloom Produce

In response to this trend of nutrient decline in produce, one action you can take right now is to find sources of heirloom vegetables, especially vegetables that are staples in your household.

Farmer’s markets are your best bet — simply ask the farmer if the crop is an heirloom. You will find some heirloom items in your local health food store as well. The added benefit is that heirlooms tend to have more flavor and often look a bit more interesting than their commercial counterparts.

Grow Heirloom Produce

Join the growing trend in home gardening and grow your own heirloom fruits and vegetables. On the Traditional Foods site, we have created resources to help you get started in building your soil, composting, buying and saving seed, choosing a location, and knowing your seasons.

Select seed that is open-pollinated, indicated by “OP” on the label. Hybrid seeds are marked F1. Grow your crops is well-composted soil so that the plants will be as prolific as possible and will provide you with nutrient dense produce.

Soaking beans will reduce phytic acid and your beans will cook faster. Ideally, you will plan to cook beans the day before, soak them over night, and have them cooking for lunch or dinner.

Phytic Acid in Food and Iron Absorption

As inspiration that reducing phytic acid in food, check out the results of a study on grains. Food scientists removed phytic acid from wheat, oats, corn, and rice and saw an increase in iron absorption of between 300% and 1100%. On the low end of the scale, you triple your iron by reducing phytic acid. Of course, you probably will not reduce the phytic acid in your beans to zero in your kitchen, but you can certainly make a dent in it.

Soaking Beans to Reduce Phytic Acid

If you read nothing else, here is your take-home:

Soak your beans overnight in warm water.

Below you can explore results from food science on time and temperature, but if you can set up a system in your kitchen in which your beans are soaking over night (or even for 24 hours) in warm water, you are ahead of the game. Your beans will provide you with more iron and they will cook more quickly.

Before getting to the nitty-gritty, I have gotten a lot of questions over the years about beans, particularly from people who forgot to soak them and did not know what to do. Some people have turned to canned beans because they are lower in phytic acid. It is true that the canning process lowers phytic acid but as a whole foods bean-lover myself, my problem with canned beans is the canned part. For my part, I would cook the beans without having soaked them in a pinch. (Though in much of a pinch you will probably need a pressure cooker to do so.) The purpose of this article is not to make you a slave to soaking or to getting phytic acid as close to zero as possible, but to suggest you implement this very simple kitchen strategy into your everyday cooking to improve your iron absorption.

Effectiveness of Soaking Beans

One interesting study examined the retention of phytic acid in three different beans after soaking for 18 hours at room temperature. Great northern beans maintained 30% of their original phytic acid content, pinto beans 47% and kidney beans 48%. These results are better than cooking alone and better than germinating beans. Soaking is a good strategy. However, we can do even better.

There was a great little study that varied the temperature of the soaking water and found that soaking beans in warmer water was more effective. The optimum temperature in the study was 140 degrees Fahrenheit.

That is quite warm for most of our kitchens. Some people have managed this in a crockpot with success; others have probably gotten close to this under a pilot in their oven. Some people have reported that their beans have begun to ferment spontaneously. I thought that was really cool but if soured beans are not what you are going for, you could get far too much funk for your own preference.

My Method

The method I use in my kitchen is extremely simple and should work for everyone. I put my beans in a large stainless steel bowl and add extremely warm water — probably about 140 degrees. I never measure the temperature, but it is warm without burning my hands. I achieve the temperature by warming some water in a tea kettle and adding that hot water plus cool water from the tap to the bowl of beans. As the beans take in water and as the water cools in the bowl, I add more warm water. From there, I do not worry about the beans, water, or temperature. I just let them soak. I start the beans the night before either lunch or dinner the next day.

You might want to play with maintaining a higher temperature, particularly if you need the iron but using my method is certainly far better than nothing.

Ideally, you will pair your beans with vitamin C foods as well such as the bean salad pictured above. The tomato and cucumber will help you absorb more iron and, of course, they happen to taste great too.

• 1 tsp equals 6 grams.

In the category of vegetables, we included whole vegetable products in the Top 10 list. We excluded dried/dehydrated products from the Top 10. You will find some dehydrated vegetables high in iron per 100 grams,but they tend to be far more volume than anyone would consume. Furthermore, foods may be fortified with iron but are not included in this Top 10 list. The food tested for the particular graph below can be described more specifically as:

Yeast extract spread

Read more about iron in vegetables or visit our iron-rich foods list.

Vegetables typically are not a good source of iron. Those vegetables that do contain iron also are likely to be high in iron inhibitors, making it difficult to absorb much of the iron from the vegetables.

Yet, even a vegetable with little iron can play an important role in your absorption of iron. Vegetables often are rich in vitamin C and vitamin C can actually help you digest the iron better in vegetarian foods; yeast extract spread is a modest source of vitamin C.

Even so, for example you may wish to incorporate bell peppers and vine ripened tomatoes with a whole grain main dish or with legumes to improve your absorption of the iron in your entire meal. A fresh cranberry salad with your dinner would help as well because of the vitamins in the fruit itself. A glass of fruit juice is another a great strategy.

• 1 cup equals 135 grams.
• 1 root equals 305 grams.

In the category of vegetables, we included whole vegetable products in the Top 10 list. We excluded dried/dehydrated products from the Top 10. You will find some dehydrated vegetables high in iron per 100 grbut they tend to be far more volume than anyone would consume. Furthermore, foods may be fortified with iron but are not included in this Top 10 list. The food tested for the particular graph below can be described more specifically as:

Yautia (tannier), raw

Read more about iron in vegetables or visit our iron-rich foods list.

Vegetables overall are not a good source of iron. Those vegetables that do contain iron also tend to be high in substances that inhibit iron — you may not take in a large amount of iron from the vegetable itself.

However, even a vegetable with very little iron may play a valuable role in iron metabolism. Vegetables can often be high in vitamin C, a vitamin that will actually help you take up the iron in non-meat food items; yautia (tannier) is a meager source of vitamin C.

Yet, as an example you can incorporate tomatoes and green peppers with a whole grain salad or with legumes to improve your metabolism of the iron in your entire meal. A fresh mango salad along with your meal would also boost your iron metabolism because of the vitamins in the fruit itself. A glass of fruit juice is a further an excellent strategy.

• 1 cup equals 104 grams.
• 1 pod equals 14 grams.

In the category of vegetables, we included whole vegetable products in the Top 10 list. We excluded dried/dehydrated products from the Top 10. You will find some dehydrated vegetables high in iron per 100 grambut they tend to be far more volume than anyone would consume. Furthermore, foods may be fortified with iron but are not included in this Top 10 list. The food tested for the particular graph below can be described more specifically as:

Yardlong bean, cooked, boiled, drained, without salt

Read more about iron in vegetables or visit our iron-rich foods list.

Vegetables generally are not an exceptional source of iron. Those vegetables that are packed with iron also tend to be full of iron blockers and so you may not take in much of the iron from the vegetables.

Yet, even a vegetable with very little iron may play an important part in iron absorption. Vegetables tend to be great sources of vitamin C and vitamin C can help you digest the iron better in your vegetarian food items; yardlong bean is a medium source of vitamin C.

As an example, you may wish to incorporate vine ripened tomatoes and green peppers with a whole grain salad or with a bean-based dish to improve your metabolism of the iron in your entire meal. A raw mango salad along with your meal would help as well because of the vitamin C in the fruit itself. A glass of fruit juice is another an effective move.

• 1 cup equals 120 grams.
• 1 cup equals 130 grams.

In the category of vegetables, we included whole vegetable products in the Top 10 list. We excluded dried/dehydrated products from the Top 10. You will find some dehydrated vegetables high in iron per 100 grabut they tend to be far more volume than anyone would consume. Furthermore, foods may be fortified with iron but are not included in this Top 10 list. The food tested for the particular graph below can be described more specifically as:

Yambean (jicama), raw

Read more about iron in vegetables or visit our iron-rich foods list.

Vegetables for the most part are not an excellent iron source. Those vegetables that are packed with iron also tend to be loaded with iron inhibitors and so you may not absorb a considerable amount of iron from the vegetable itself.

On the other hand, even a vegetable with very little iron may play a major part in iron absorption. Vegetables are often full of vitamin C and vitamin C can actually help you metabolize the iron better in plant-based food items; yambean (jicama) is a solid source of vitamin C.

For instance, you can combine vine ripened tomatoes and sweet green peppers with a grain-based main dish or with beans to improve your digestion of the iron in your whole meal. A raw cantaloupe dessert with your dinner would also increase your iron metabolism because of the fruit’s content of vitamin C. A glass of fruit juice is one more an effective strategy.

• 1 cup equals 136 grams.
• .5 cup equals 68 grams.

In the category of vegetables, we included whole vegetable products in the Top 10 list. We excluded dried/dehydrated products from the Top 10. You will find some dehydrated vegetables high in iron per 100 grabut they tend to be far more volume than anyone would consume. Furthermore, foods may be fortified with iron but are not included in this Top 10 list. The food tested for the particular graph below can be described more specifically as:

Yam, cooked, boiled, drained, or baked, without salt

Read more about iron in vegetables or visit our iron-rich foods list.

Vegetables for the most part are not an exceptional iron source. Those vegetables that do contain iron also tend to be packed with iron inhibitors — you may not absorb much of the iron from the vegetable itself.

However, even a vegetable with modest amounts of iron can play a significant part in iron metabolism. Vegetables often times are great sources of vitamin C and vitamin C will actually help you digest the iron better in non-meat foods; yams are a fair source of vitamin C.

For example, you can incorporate bell peppers and vine ripened tomatoes with a grain-based salad or with a bean-based dish to improve your absorption of the iron in your meal as a whole. A raw peach dessert along with your meal would also raise your iron metabolism because of the fruit’s content of vitamin C. A glass of fruit juice is one more an outstanding strategy.