Iron In Foods: Beneficial Properties And Effects On The Body

Do you notice that you have less energy and get tired faster than usual? Many people have busy schedules, multitasking is becoming the norm, and “falling off your feet” already seems quite natural. But perhaps the reason is not in the lack of rest, but in changes at the level of biochemistry. Deficiency of important trace elements negatively affects well-being. In particular, iron provides oxygen to the internal organs and all body systems. The lack of this component entails the inability to produce respiratory processes at the cellular level.

From today's article, you will learn the beneficial properties of iron, the body's needs for it, signs of iron deficiency, which foods are high in iron, how to properly replenish iron to improve its absorption, even on a vegetarian diet.

Useful properties of iron and its effect on the body

Iron plays an extremely important role in maintaining the normal functioning of the body, in particular in the production of hemoglobin.

Hemoglobin is the protein that makes up red blood cells (erythrocytes). It is red blood cells that carry oxygen throughout the body, while iron in this process is responsible for its capture and preservation. Oxygen is important for providing the cells and tissues of the body with enough energy, so a decrease in oxygen leads to constant fatigue. The body literally stops breathing.

The brain suffers first. How can you feel it? There is a violation of concentration, memory loss, learning, impaired coordination of movement, motivation.

Thus, iron is essential for healthy cells and mitochondrial function and overall cellular health. Iron is also an integral part of many enzymes and proteins involved in a variety of metabolic processes. They are responsible for the destruction and utilization of accumulated toxins, the conversion of calories into energy, and also play an important role in the functioning of the immune system.

According to WHO statistics, almost 60% of the world's population is iron deficient, and in 30% this deficiency is so great that complications such as anemia occur.

Since iron deficiency is not the only cause of anemia, it is important to make sure that it is the iron deficiency that caused the anemia. There are dozens of types of anemia (including anemia caused by low levels of vitamin B12), in our article we are talking about iron deficiency.

The consequences of iron deficiency are especially unpleasant in those people who need it the most:

1. Young children: psychomotor retardation, increased susceptibility to infections, cognitive impairment, poor school performance, behavioral problems later in life, impact on future height and body proportions.

2. Pregnant women: IUGR, placental disease, premature birth, increased risk of maternal and infant mortality, iron deficiency in the child.

3. Adolescents: decreased memory and attention, learning ability, decreased physical activity, increased conflict.

4. Elderly: complications of the course of all chronic diseases.

Are you at risk for iron deficiency if you don't fit into any of the categories?

Iron deficiency is very common, especially in menstruating women, especially those with heavy bleeding. Certain inflammatory bowel diseases, such as Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis, can also increase the risk of iron deficiency. In addition, low iron levels can occur in vegetarians, vegans, and others who do not eat a balanced diet and do not add iron-rich foods.

Signs of iron deficiency

In fact, statistics do not take into account everyone - there are people who live in a state of latent anemia, due to incomplete diagnosis. Check yourself on the clinical manifestations of iron deficiency:

• dizziness, tinnitus, flies flash before the eyes;

• there are taste changes (for example, a desire to eat chalk), like strange smells (acetone, gasoline);

• nails exfoliate and break, become flat, with transverse stripes, can take a concave shape;

• hair falls out and/or grows slowly;

• dry pale skin, flaky;

• cracks in the corners of the mouth;

• brittle teeth, rough faded enamel, "varnish tongue";

• have difficulty swallowing dry or solid foods;

• shortness of breath appeared;

• it happens that the rhythm of heart contractions is disturbed;

• weakness (hypotension (muscular, arterial);

• pigmentation of the skin color of coffee with milk.

The more questions you answer yes to, the more likely you are to be deficient in iron.

The most common reasons for iron loss are:

1. Infants: IDA, maternal toxicity during pregnancy, threatened miscarriage, infections, bleeding, placental disease, multiple pregnancies, prematurity, insufficient dietary iron intake, early use of cow's and goat's milk in feeding the baby.

2. Pregnant women: unbalanced nutrition (diet, vegetarianism), heavy periods before pregnancy, bleeding, multiple pregnancy, diseases of the gastrointestinal tract.

3. Women: unbalanced diet (diet, vegetarianism), heavy periods, gynecological diseases.

4. Adolescent girls: unbalanced nutrition (diet, vegetarianism), rapid growth, menstrual irregularities.

5. Elderly and men: unbalanced diet, gastrointestinal diseases (PUD, gastrointestinal bleeding), low acidity, the use of drugs (including NSAIDs), oncology.

Laboratory diagnosis of iron deficiency is not limited to hemoglobin alone. Important markers of anemia: ferritin and transferrin.

The minimum rate of ferritin should be equal to the figure of your weight. That is, a girl with a weight of 50-60 will focus on the value of ferritin 50-60. High ferritin is a marker of inflammation. In a healthy body, ferritin does not go above 90.

Thus, a normal ferritin level is one of the main indicators of health. Include it in your annual body check-up.

Daily requirement of the body for iron

Iron is one of the essential (irreplaceable) trace elements in the body. In total, the body contains 4 g of iron.

The Recommended Daily Allowance for iron is actually a very rough guide. It is impossible to calculate the exact dose, since the absorption of iron in the body depends very much on the state of the body itself and on many related factors.

You should focus on the state of the body and do a blood test if you suspect a lack or excess of iron.

Therefore, daily allowances are given for information only:

• Boys from 14 to 18 years old - 11 mg.

• Girls from 14 to 18 years old - 15 mg.

• Men from 19 to 70 years old - 8 mg.

• Women from 19 to 50 years old - 18 mg.

• Women 50 years and older - 8 mg.

According to WHO estimates, in developing countries every second pregnant woman suffers from anemia, as her iron consumption increases along with the growth of the fetus.

The presence of iron deficiency anemia leads to a violation of the quality of life of patients, reduces their performance, causes functional disorders in many organs and systems.

With iron deficiency in pregnant women, the risk of complications in childbirth increases, and in the absence of timely and adequate therapy, iron deficiency may also occur in the fetus.

Iron is excreted from the body of a woman in the amount of 2-3 mg per day through the intestines, bile, urine, through the exfoliating epithelium of the skin, during lactation and menstruation.

During pregnancy, the need for iron steadily increases in the first trimester by 1 mg per day, in the second trimester - by 2 mg per day, in the third trimester - by 3-5 mg per day. To produce additional iron, 300 - 540 mg of this element is used. Of these, 250 - 300 mg of iron is spent on the needs of the fetus, 50 - 100 mg - on the construction of the placenta, 50 mg of iron is deposited in the myometrium.

Iron loss is most pronounced at 16-20 weeks of gestation, which coincides with the period of the onset of hematopoiesis in the fetus and an increase in blood mass in the pregnant woman.

In the third stage of labor (with physiological blood loss), from 200 to 700 mg of iron is lost. Later, during lactation, about 200 mg more.

Thus, about 800 - 950 mg of iron is consumed from the maternal depot during pregnancy and in the postpartum period.

Diet rich in iron

To replenish the daily intake of iron, it is necessary to eat a balanced diet, including foods rich in iron - animal and vegetable origin. But a clear iron deficiency cannot be cured by diet alone!

Iron in food comes in two forms, heme and non-heme.

1. Heme iron - from animal products

   It should account for 15-20% of the diet. Its bioavailability is 30%. This is a high figure, showing how much iron the body actually receives from the total amount of iron in the product.

   Iron content in animal products:

   The product's name

   Iron content in 100g

   Vobla

   0.8 mg

   Pink salmon

   0.6 mg

   Red granular caviar

   1.8 mg

   Pollack caviar

   1.5 mg

   Caviar black granular

   2.4 mg

   Squid

   1.1 mg

   Flounder

   0.7 mg

   Keta

   0.6 mg

   Baltic sprat

   1.4 mg

   Caspian sprat

   1.4 mg

   Shrimp

   1.8 mg

   Bream

   0.3 mg

   Atlantic salmon (salmon)

   0.8 mg

   mussels

   3.2 mg

   Pollock

   0.8 mg

   capelin

   0.4 mg

   Meat (lamb)

   2 mg

   Meat (beef)

   2.7 mg

   Meat (turkey)

   1.4 mg

   Meat (rabbit)

   3.3 mg

   Meat (chicken)

   1.6 mg

   Meat (fatty pork)

   1.4 mg

   Meat (pork meat)

   1.7 mg

   Meat (broiler chickens)

   1.3 mg

   Navaga

   0.7 mg

   sea ​​bass

   0.9 mg

   river perch

   0.7 mg

   Sturgeon

   0.7 mg

   Halibut

   0.7 mg

   beef liver

   6.9 mg

   Haddock

   0.7 mg

   Beef kidneys

   6 mg

   Cancer river

   1.8 mg

   Carp

   0.6 mg

   herring

   1 mg

   Fatty herring

   1 mg

   Low fat herring

   1 mg

   Salted herring

   1.1 mg

   Mackerel

   1.7 mg

   catfish

   1 mg

   Horse mackerel

   1.1 mg

   Zander

   0.5 mg

   Cod

   0.5 mg

   Tuna

   1 mg

   Acne

   0.4 mg

   Oyster

   6.2 mg

   Hake

   0.7 mg

   Pike

   0.7 mg

2. Non-heme iron - from plant products. It should account for 75-80% of the diet. Its bioavailability is only 10%.

Iron content in plant foods:

The release of iron from products is reduced during their heat treatment, freezing and long-term storage.

It is equally important that the body absorbs all iron-rich foods.

What affects the absorption of iron

Several factors affect the absorption of iron in the body:

1. Iron absorption requires normal secretion of gastric juice. The lack of iron in the body, in turn, leads to a deterioration in gastric secretion. There is a vicious circle and iron deficiency in the body is exacerbated. A special risk zone is a natural decrease in acidity after 55 years!

1. Some components of tea and coffee, as well as phytin, bran fiber, soy protein and calcium interfere with the absorption of iron in the body. Iron is not absorbed with milk and dairy products. For example, iron from buckwheat porridge will not be absorbed if cooked with milk.

2. Vitamin C, organic acids, some simple carbohydrates improve the absorption of iron in the body. Therefore, iron is well absorbed from vegetables and fruits rich in vitamin C, organic acids and carbohydrates.

3. The presence of all co-factors for assimilation.

   For successful absorption of iron, the body must necessarily receive:

   • Vitamins A and C.

   • Vitamins of group B in the form of active forms.

   • Chrome, silicon, zinc, copper, manganese, molybdenum, iodine.

   • Bioflavonoids.

   • Coenzyme Q10.

   • Selenium.

    

   A good level of selenium in the body is essential as the active enzymes that form hemoglobin contain selenium. In addition, if the level of selenium is low, then the life span of red blood cells decreases from 110-120 days (normal) to 40-60 days. All these factors lead to anemia.

4. The correct combination of trace elements when taking dietary supplements. This is not even a question of separate intake, but the importance of dosage. Since they are in a competitive relationship and enter the cell through one channel. Accordingly, if there is a lot of zinc, iron will not be absorbed (and there will be anemia), if there is a lot of iron, a zinc deficiency is likely. And if they are in equal quantities, then the assimilation will be equally good.

If, according to clinical signs and laboratory parameters, you have iron deficiency anemia, then you need to consult a specialist.

Iron for Vegetarians

When switching to a plant-based diet, most people are met with objections: “Where are you going to get iron from?” As we found out from not knowing that plant foods also contain iron, just in a different form.

Iron content in plant foods:

What fruits and berries have the highest iron content?

But if you know how to add more iron-rich foods to your diet and improve its absorption, then deficiency problems will not arise.

The fact is that phytates, found in grains and cereals, can interfere with the absorption of non-heme iron from plant foods. Calcium supplements also interfere with iron absorption when taken with food.

Polyphenols, which include tannic acid, can interfere with the absorption of non-heme iron. Coffee, black and green teas are considered rich in polyphenols. Therefore, it is best to avoid the above foods if you wish to improve the absorption of iron from plant foods.

But it is also important what level of ferritin is at the moment.

Vitamin C is a strong enhancer of iron absorption from plant foods and can interfere with inhibitors found in plant foods that interfere with absorption.

The amino acid L-lysine also plays an important role in the absorption of iron and zinc. Among plant foods, L-lysine is found in high amounts mainly in legumes (peanuts, beans, lentils, peas) and quinoa.

The content of vitamin C in foods:

Naturally, this is not the whole list, but it reflects the approximate range of products that can fully satisfy the need for vitamin C.

Traditional Chinese Medicine also highlights a list of foods rich in iron:

• Products with black pigment: black rice, black sesame, eggplant, seaweed, black muer mushrooms, cuttlefish, squid.

• Foods with red pigment: red beans, red beans, pomegranate, carrots, tomatoes, dereza berries.

• Phytopreparations: woolly-flowered astragalus, intoxicating harelip, safflower-shaped leuzea, madder dye, incarnate passionflower, blue cyanosis, marsh cudweed, creeping thyme, string, long turmeric, perga.

If almost everyone knows about iron deficiency and has heard the phrase “Yes, you just have low hemoglobin”, then they rarely think about excess iron.

And it is caused by several factors:

• Occurs where iron is found in drinking water.

• Due to exhaust gases, the body compensates for the lack of oxygen by increasing the concentration of hemoglobin.

• Approximately 15% of people are carriers of a gene (it is also called the "Celtic gene", for the most part this gene is common among the inhabitants of Scandinavia), which causes the body to accumulate iron.

Some symptoms of iron poisoning (too much iron) are similar to those of iron deficiency:

• pallor;

• thinness;

• weakness;

• heart rhythm disturbances;

• pigmentation in places where it should not be: on the palms, armpits.

Thus, you may notice that the symptoms may indicate two opposite conditions. Therefore, it is important to undergo annual examinations.

Step 1: Finding out and eliminating the cause (pay attention to the gastrointestinal tract and gynecology in women), normalization of the intestinal condition (candida, parasitosis, other pathogenic flora, as well as gastrointestinal diseases).

Step 2: We bring the total protein in the body to normal.

Optimal protein level - 75 g/l

Step 3: Providing all the necessary co-factors for the absorption of iron from food or in combination with dietary supplements.

Once your iron levels are back up, continue to eat iron-rich foods as a preventive measure to keep your iron levels at the desired level. Then the feeling of inexplicable fatigue will not bother you.