Simple Nutrition Tips For Anaemia
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Simple Nutrition Tips For Anaemia
Have you been told that your iron levels are too low? Anaemia caused by iron deficiency is one of the most common nutrition-related conditions out there. But there are ways that you can tweak your diet and nutrition to manage anaemia naturally.
Load up on iron-rich foods
This is the most obvious tip that you’ve likely heard before – including more iron-rich foods in your daily diet. Which foods are best depends on whether you’re an omnivore, vegetarian or vegan.
Animal-based foods contain a form of iron called haem iron. This is the easiest form for your body to absorb, so if you’re an omnivore, you’ll want to include at least a few haem iron foods. Sources of haem iron include:
Red meat such as beef and lamb
Poultry such as chicken and fish
Fish and seafood
Eggs
Organ meats
Plant foods contain a form of iron called non-haem iron, which is harder for the body to absorb compared to animal sources. So if you are relying on plant foods for your iron requirements, you want to ensure you’re including sufficient iron-rich options including:
Beans and legumes
Wholegrains
Nuts
Seeds
Green leafy vegetables such as spinach
Cacao, cocoa and dark chocolate
Some fortified foods such as cereal and bread
Add a source of vitamin C
Vitamin C aids in the absorption of iron, making it easier for it to cross from the digestive tract into the bloodstream. So if you want to optimise your iron absorption, you want to add in a source of vitamin C with every iron-rich meal and snack.
Think:
Citrus fruits such as lemon, grapefruit and orange
Berries
Kiwifruit
Cantaloupe (rock melon)
Tomato
Brussel sprouts
Cabbage
Capsicum (bell pepper)
Chilli peppers
Be wary of iron blockers
While it’s important to get enough iron into your diet, you also need to be aware of what can block its update. In the case of iron, this includes compounds such as tannins (found in coffee and teas), phytates and oxalates (found in many plants), and calcium.
Drink coffee and tea away from meals, particularly those with iron-rich foods
Rotate high-oxalate spinach with other options such as kale or bok choy
Don’t take calcium supplements with an iron-rich meal or alongside your iron supplement
For those who are plant-based, you may also need to be aware of the content of your iron-rich foods. For example, beans are a source of iron, but they also contain phytates. To counteract this, you want to soak and/or sprout your beans, legumes, nuts and seeds.
Eat mindfully
It’s not just what you eat – it’s also how you eat. This goes for any nutrient that the human body needs, but it’s particularly useful for minerals such as iron.
Why? Half of the battle with iron is breaking down the food so the iron can be set free to be absorbed. When you eat on the run, don’t chew your food properly and don’t take time to enjoy your food, you actually impair the digestive process.
Chewing your food helps to break food down so that stomach acid and digestive enzymes have less work to do. Slowing down to eat reduces physical stress, which naturally encourages the production of digestive enzymes. So make sure for at least one iron-rich meal per day, you sit down, take your time, and chew thoroughly!
Don’t neglect your gut health
Another important consideration when it comes to absorbing iron from food is the state of your gut health. If your gut is unhappy, inflamed or out of balance, this can affect your ability to break down iron-rich foods and extract the iron so it can be absorbed.
You can learn more about how to support your gut health here.
Consider investing in iron cookware
One easy way that you can get more iron in, no matter what your dietary preference? Start cooking with iron cookware. Iron cookware can leach iron into the food, particularly if the pan is new and less seasoned.
It doesn’t mean all of your cookware needs to be iron, particularly if you live with others who don’t have low iron. But it is one way to add some extra iron into your meals. And yes, research shows that it can be an effective way of reducing anaemia!
Time your iron supplements right
If your iron levels are low enough, your health practitioner might recommend an iron supplement. But did you know that to optimise your iron levels, you want to take iron supplements at the right time?
Because too much iron is dangerous to the body, it is tightly controlled by a hormone named hepcidin. Hepcidin levels will rise when you have a significant dose of iron (such as via a supplement) and prevent you from absorbing too much at once. Levels also fluctuate throughout the day.
So what’s the solution?
1 – consider taking your iron supplements every second day. Studies show that hepcidin spikes for around 48 hours after taking an iron supplement, and that alternate day dosing will lead to greater iron absorption compared to daily.
2 – Take your iron supplement either first thing in the morning or late in the evening. This is because hepcidin is lowest at these times of day. Remember that your iron supplement may need to be taken away from medications such as thyroxine, so if you take thyroid medication in the morning, you can take iron in the evening.
Monitor your iron levels regularly
As I touched on earlier, too much iron is actually more harmful than too little iron! If you’ve been diagnosed with low iron and are adding diet and supplement changes to address it, you want to keep an eye on your iron levels.
Most practitioners recommend a follow-up blood test after 3 months to see how your body is responding to the changes.
Remember to address the root cause
The previous tips might help to boost your iron levels naturally, but you want to find out why it happened in the first place. Low iron intake is only one cause of iron deficiency – it can also be caused by factors such as:
Inflammation from any chronic disease or condition
Undiagnosed or unmanaged Coeliac disease
Digestive disorders such as ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease
Menstrual issues such as endometriosis and long/heavy periods
Pregnancy
Excessive vigorous exercise, particularly in athletes
If you want to prevent future iron issues, it’s important to identify and address the root cause.
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