What to do in case of iron deficiency? Here you will find information on how to get rid of your iron deficiency, which foods contain a lot of iron and how you can prevent the deficiency.
Iron deficiency is a common deficiency condition.
As a result of the deficiency, those affected suffer from symptoms such as pallor and listlessness.
The rumor that we women are more affected by nutrient deficiencies than men also persists strongly.
Iron deficiency affects almost everyone at least 1x in life. You feel tired, depressed, tend to have dark circles under your eyes and simply can't get going. Very few people think of too little iron in the blood when they see these signs.
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Iron deficiency is particularly common in women, who suffer from typical symptoms such as a pale complexion or constant listlessness.
However, you don't necessarily have to give in to nutrient deficiencies, as you can successfully combat them through proper nutrition and preventative measures.
We show you how to get your iron deficiency under control with nutrition. Without tablets. There are several ways to combat the nutrient deficiency.
How iron deficiency develops
Before we answer the question: "What to do with iron deficiency"If you want to find out more about iron deficiency, you first need to know what it is.
Iron is one of the most important trace elements in the human body, responsible primarily for blood formation. Consequently, iron is mainly found in hemoglobin or red blood pigment, as well as in myoglobin or muscle pigment and some specific enzymes.
Generally, iron is absorbed through food, so that an iron deficiency can quickly occur in the case of incorrect or deficient nutrition. But what to do for iron deficiency?
An iron deficiency occurs when you supply your body with too little iron, resulting in a mismatch between iron requirements and iron intake.
Your body needs enough iron every day to avoid deficiency symptoms.
If iron deficiency is not treated or corrected, the symptoms of deficiency persist, so that the quality of life of those affected is significantly impaired.
Why you should check your iron level once a year
You should check your iron level once a year. You do not have to go to the doctor for an iron test. You can also do it at home. There is now a whole range of self-tests.
The Iron self-test from Cerascreen helps you to measure the concentration in the blood. To do this, take a few drops of blood from your fingertip. Use the enclosed envelope to send the sample to a laboratory, where it is analyzed.
You can read the result on the Cerascreen website within 2 days. In addition, you will receive a list of foods that contain a lot of iron and helpful tips for your everyday life.
From a total of 6 iron supplements, you then choose the one that best suits your needs. The capsules are included in the price.
Find out more about the Cerascreen iron self-test here!
Why are women much more often affected by iron deficiency?
Iron deficiency as a typical nutrient deficiency is not limited to one group of people. Anyone can be affected by it. Nevertheless, we women demonstrably suffer more frequently from an iron deficiency.
The daily iron requirement is about one milligram, since the body loses this amount every day. In women of childbearing age, however, the daily iron requirement is significantly higher.
What should a woman do if she has an iron deficiency? First of all, observe carefully whether you feel particularly tired during your period. This is when the need for iron increases.
For each Menstruation needs about 25 milligrams iron. Heavy or particularly long menstrual periods mean that your body needs more iron, which must be absorbed through food.
Women need between 20 and 50 years 15 mg iron daily. For pregnant women it is 30 mg.
What to do in case of iron deficiency during pregnancy? Since during pregnancy the placenta must not only be built up, but also supplied at the same time, the iron requirement of pregnant women increases noticeably. The body plunders its supplies.
During the Pregnancy the body needs on average 1,000 milligrams iron for this task, since the baby also needs to be supplied with iron. In addition, the need for iron increases during childbirth, so that every woman must consume sufficient iron during pregnancy.
If women who either have more unusual menstrual periods or are pregnant ignore the increased need for iron, they are more likely to develop iron deficiency.
Do vegetarians suffer more often from iron deficiency?
The rumor that vegetarians, like us women, are just as likely to suffer from anemia persists.
This assumption is based on the theory that meat is considered one of the main sources of iron in the diet. If people do without meat, the iron balance cannot remain constant.
Nevertheless, even in vegetarians, the body's iron balance is strongly related to diet.
A balanced diet ensures that vegetarians no iron deficiency or other deficiency symptoms, even if they abstain from meat and fish.
Although meat provides a large proportion of the iron needed, the requirement can be met at the same time with many plant foods.
The advantage of Iron in meat lies only in the fact that the body it more easily absorbed than the vegetable iron.
There are a few ways to help the body absorb iron from plants.
Especially vitamin C helps to absorb the vegetable iron. You can obtain the necessary amount of vitamin C by drinking, among other things, one glass of Orange juice drink before the meal.
Already a handful Sesame seeds or Pumpkin seeds are also enough to cover the daily iron requirement as a vegetarian. By the way, there are plenty of foods that contain much more vitamin C than oranges and lemons.
What are the types of iron deficiency
Iron deficiency is one of the most common deficiency symptoms in humans worldwide. In most cases, it is related to a poor diet.
The disease is manifested by typical symptoms. Anemia, as iron deficiency is called in technical jargon, has three different degrees. All three forms of the deficiency symptoms cause the symptoms that affect the everyday life of affected persons.
At latent iron deficiency, the weakest form of iron deficiency, the iron stores become increasingly empty. Nevertheless, the body is still able to carry out blood formation through sufficient iron.
At absolute iron deficiency on the other hand, the iron stores are already empty. Symptoms of deficiency appear at this stage, making the affected person aware of the deficiency.
A special form of iron deficiency is considered to be the functional iron deficiency. The body has a normal or increased total body iron supply. Nevertheless, it cannot draw on the iron reserves, which also causes typical deficiency symptoms to occur.
What are the symptoms of iron deficiency
Iron deficiency or anemia is manifested by typical symptoms, which, however, are usually ignored at the beginning.
This is due to the fact that the symptoms can be related not only exclusively to too little iron and consequently an iron deficiency.
One of the most central symptoms in anemia is considered to be Fatigue. Affected individuals suffer from persistent fatigue in combination with Listlessness and consequently a reduced performance. Also a Feeling of weakness occurs frequently.
Externally, an iron deficiency is manifested by Brittle skin or torn corners of the mouth. Due to the fact that the blood formation is strongly influenced by the reduced iron balance, the entire skin appearance changes.
Affected people suffer from a Paleness. If you recognize or feel some of these symptoms, you should consult a doctor and clarify the suspicion of iron deficiency.
Only a visit to the doctor will ultimately clarify whether the symptoms are related to anemia or caused by other diseases or life circumstances.
Why is iron important for the body?
Iron as an important building block in blood formation is essential for the body.
This is due to the fact that iron is present in both white and red blood cells is contained. The hemoglobin of the red blood cells (erythrocytes) needs iron to form the typical red color of the blood.
At the same time, with the help of hemoglobin, red blood cells ensure that both Oxygen like carbon dioxide can be bound in the blood. And thus reaches the tissues and especially the lungs through transport in the bloodstream.
Consequently, a Iron deficiency negative effects on hemoglobin as well as the Red blood cell formation out. The oxygen supply of the body can also only be guaranteed if the body is supplied with sufficient iron.
Furthermore, iron is used to Blood and cell loss to prevent.
Both minor and major bleeding require iron to maintain the body's iron balance and prevent iron deficiency.
In order for iron balance to be maintained or increased, the body responds independently by increasing the Intestine on a Increased iron absorption prepared from the food.
The iron requirement strongly depends on gender, age and life circumstances, for example pregnancy and breastfeeding. Only with sufficient iron is the body able to prevent blood and cell breakdown.
What to do in case of iron deficiency? First aid for too little iron
If you are suspected of having an iron deficiency, you must first clarify this with your doctor. He or she will conduct examinations to rule out other diseases that also have the typical symptoms of iron deficiency and will initiate the necessary therapeutic measures.
Most often, the treatment of anemia involves taking specific Iron preparations. Depending on the hardship and the remedy, affected persons must take the preparations once or twice a day for a period of at least three months.
The preparations are available in pharmacies in the form of dragées, capsules, juice, tablets or herbal elixirs. In rare cases, the attending physician also arranges for an iron infusion. Blood transfusions may be necessary if you have a Particularly serious case anemia is prevalent and this cannot be remedied by other measures.
Depending on the hardship, affected individuals may also be able to correct their iron deficiency through a Adjustment of their diet correct. If the anemia was caused primarily by malnutrition, an iron-rich diet can help correct the deficiency.
At the same time helps a balanced diet with sufficient iron as Preventive measureso that anemia does not occur at all.
Foods that contain a lot of iron
If you want to prevent an iron deficiency with food or treat an existing anemia with a proper diet, there are many iron-rich foods.
The so-called Heme Iron or divalent iron is mainly found in Meat and meat products and can be easily utilized by the body.
Vegetable iron on the other hand, can be utilized just as easily if it is absorbed through suitable foods. A particularly high iron content is found in green leafy vegetables such as Chard, spinach or dandelion. The advantage of this vegetable is that, in addition to iron, it provides sufficient vitamin C, which is needed for the absorption of iron.
Dandelion salad recipes by the way, taste very tasty all year round!
The green leafy vegetables should be eaten raw as a salad or with a dressing, for example lemon dressing. This way, the nutrients are not lost. Alternatively, you can also prepare a smoothie from them.
Plant foods with a lot of iron per 100 grams
- Pumpkin seeds contain 12.5 mg iron
- Sesame contains 10 mg iron
- Poppy seed contains 9.5 mg iron
- Pine nuts contain 9.2 mg iron
- Amaranth and millet contain 9 mg iron
- Flaxseed* contain 8.2 mg iron
- Quinoa and lentils contain 8 mg iron
- Pistachios contain 7.3 mg iron
- Spinach contains 4.1 mg iron
- Dandelion contains 3.1 mg iron
More animal and plant foods rich in iron gib't in the iron table.
Numerous seeds and kernels also contain a high proportion of iron. They include Pumpkin seeds, Flaxseed* and sesame seeds.
Pumpkin seeds help you meet your body's iron requirements. On average it is already enough a handful of pumpkin seedsto cover almost the entire daily requirement of iron.
If iron absorption is to be promoted not only by vitamin C, but also by protein, the following are available Legumes an. Ungerminated pulses have a high content of phytic acid, which is known to inhibit iron and other minerals. Therefore, you should always eat legumes only germinated or cooked.
For carbohydrates in combination with iron offer Amaranth, quinoa and millet an. The foods have between seven and nine milligrams of iron per 100 g.
What you should not eat if you are deficient in iron
On the other hand, you should eat foods like Coffee, black tea and red wine avoid if you want to replenish your iron stores through your diet.
This also applies to Dairy products and legumes, which have been soaked for too short a time. Although milk is known as a source of calcium, the calcium inhibits iron absorption from cereals and other foods.
If you consume the aforementioned foods in large quantities, you should definitely adjust your diet to promote iron absorption. Small amounts, on the other hand, are allowed, because in this case the body can continue to process the supplied iron.
How you can prevent iron deficiency
So that with you not at all the question: "What to do with iron deficiency?" arises, you should prevent anemia.
As a preventive measure, especially for women with particularly frequent or heavy menstruation, a blood test once or twice a year at the doctor's office is a good idea.
Otherwise, a balanced mixed diet with sufficient iron-containing foods is sufficient for people who do not have a proven iron deficiency.
Since the choice of iron-rich foods is wide, both meat and vegetable products, the iron requirement can be easily met. With a balanced diet it happens only extremely rarely that the body has too little iron and consequently a deficiency can occur.
Vitamin C promotes the body's absorption of iron
Vitamin C is important for the absorption of iron from plant foods.
If you combine plant-based iron with sufficient vitamin C, your body is able to utilize iron in higher amounts.
Numerous plant foods contain not only iron, but also sufficient vitamin C. In most cases, you do not need to take additional vitamins. So in most cases you don't need to take any additional vitamins.
The combination of iron-rich foods with lemon juice is particularly suitable, for example as a dressing for salads.
Orange juice, preferably freshly squeezed, also promotes the absorption of plant iron. This also applies to kiwi, if you want to take vitamin C through fruit.
Vegetables such as red peppers, broccoli, red cabbage and white cabbage have a high vitamin C value. To prevent the vitamin from being destroyed, you should eat the foods as raw vegetables.
Our conclusion
What to do in case of iron deficiency? Very simple: Change your diet and closely monitor your eating habits. Are you really eating a balanced diet? Do you drink too much coffee? Just grab a few pumpkin seeds to snack on in between meals. This will replenish your iron stores very quickly.
If you don't feel better even after changing your diet, or if you have very severe symptoms, a blood test can provide information.
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