April 9th, 2010
daniyzfit

Running Low on Iron?

Iron is an important component of haemoglobin and myoglobin. Haemoglobin transports oxygen in the blood while myoglobin transports oxygen in the muscles.

Some healthy food sources of Iron include- Beans (especially lentils but they are all good sources), green leafy vegetables (such as spinach, collard greens, kale, bok choy, swiss chard and broccoli just to name a few), nuts and seeds, lean meats and fatty fish (if you go over board on this one you are likely going to run into cholesterol issues), and watermelon.

The plant based sources of iron are often times more readily absorbed because of their vitamin C content.  But if you are wanting a super food dose of vitamin C to add into the mix Kiwi is an excellent source even far superior to the citrus fruit which are also excellent sources of vitamin C.  If you are eating a high volume of your fruits and vegetables you are more than likely getting ample amounts of vitamin C as well as iron.

note- tea and coffee have been reported to hinder iron absorption.

photo cc by smig44_uk

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