Iron

Iron is an interesting nutrient – we need it desperately, but too much is extremely dangerous. Do not take iron unless you are a menstruating woman or your health provider has ascertained from a blood test that you are lacking iron. Anaemia is not always due to iron deficiency, but iron-deficiency anaemia is a state where iron is needed. Iron helps to carry oxygen around the body; it is an important constituent of haemoglobin – the actual substance in red blood cells that carries oxygen around the body. Many other systems such as the endocrine system depend on iron, as do enzymes and energy. Be aware though that there are two kinds of iron: one is iron from animal products (called heme iron – and this is the best and most absorbable type), and plant iron (called non-heme iron, which is poorly absorbed and not at all the same as heme iron).

FOOD SOURCES INCLUDE:

• Liver

• Grass-fed beef

• Spinach

• Sardines

• Black beans, lentils

• Pistachios

• Raisins