Monday, November 1, 2010

Iron

Iron (blood mineral)

Iron builds up the blood and increases resistance to disease. It promotes the metabolism of protein.

Iron deficiency symptoms: Anemia, pale skin, fatigue, constipation, hemorrhages, nosebleeds, lusterless brittle nails, difficult breathing, and a tendency to skin eruptions. Infections and peptic ulcers may also lead to anemia. It is common in young girls and pregnant women.


Who is at risk for iron deficiencies:

Infants (particularly pre-term and low birth weight infants), young children and teenage girls: Because they are growing so fast
Women of child-bearing age: Because iron is lost during menstruation
Pregnant women: Because they are supplying iron to the growing infant (Note supplement cautions during pregnancy below)
People who eat diets that are low in iron (for instance some vegetarians)
People with renal failure, especially those undergoing routine dialysis
People with gastrointestinal disorders who do not absorb iron normally

Sources of iron:
Liver (although, being a detoxifying organ, liver is a potential source of pollutants), oyster, heart, lean meat, green leafy vegetables, brewers yeast, molasses, prunes, apricots, peaches (dried also), bananas, eggs, whole grains, pumpkin, sunflower, sesame seeds, kelp Fucus vesiculosus, parsley, soybeans, lentils, and almonds.
Vegetarians or people who choose not to eat red meat, which is the best source of dietary iron, should include plenty of dark green leafy vegetables, dried beans, and whole cereal grains in their diet. A vegetarian diet is often high in vitamin C, which helps aid iron absorption.

Animal sources of iron are better absorbed than vegetable sources because it is in the heme form. Red meat is helpful and a good non-meat source is blackstrap molasses.

Sources of Heme Iron[3]
Chicken liver, cooked, 3½-oz, 12.8-mg
Oysters, breaded and fried, 6-pieces, 4.5-mg
Beef, chuck, lean only, braised, 3-oz, 3.2-mg
Clams, breaded, fried, ¾-cup, 3.0-mg
Beef, tenderloin, roasted, 3-oz, 3.0-mg
Turkey, dark meat, roasted, 3½-oz, 2.3-mg
Beef, eye of round, roasted, 3-oz, 2.2-mg
Turkey, light meat, roasted, 3½-oz, 1.6-mg
Chicken, leg, meat only, roasted, 3½-oz, 1.3-mg
Tuna, fresh blue fin, cooked, dry heat, 3-oz, 1.1-mg
Chicken, breast, roasted, 3-oz, 1.1-mg
Halibut, cooked, dry heat, 3-oz, 0.9-mg
Crab, blue crab, cooked, moist heat, 3-oz, 0.8-mg
Pork, loin, broiled, 3-oz, 0.8-mg
Tuna, white, canned in water, 3-oz, 0.8-mg
Shrimp, mixed species, cooked, moist heat, 4-large, 0.7-mg

Sources of Nonheme Iron
Ready-to-eat cereal, 100% iron fortified, ¾-cup, 18.0-mg
Oatmeal, instant, fortified, prepared with water, 1-cup, 10.0-mg
Soybeans, mature, boiled, 1-cup, 8.8-mg
Lentils, boiled, 1-cup, 6.6-mg
Beans, kidney, mature, boiled, 1-cup, 5.2-mg
Beans, lima, large, mature, boiled, 1-cup, 4.5-mg
Beans, navy, mature, boiled, 1-cup, 4.5-mg
Ready-to-eat cereal, 25% iron fortified, ¾-cup, 4.5-mg
Beans, black, mature, boiled, 1-cup, 3.6-mg
Beans, pinto, mature, boiled, 1-cup, 3.6-mg
Molasses, blackstrap, 1-T, 3.5-mg
Tofu, raw, firm, ½ cup, 3.4-mg
Spinach, boiled, drained, ½ cup, 3.2-mg
Spinach, canned, drained solids ½ cup, 2.5-mg
Black-eyed peas (cowpeas), boiled, 1-cup, 1.8-mg
Spinach, frozen, chopped, boiled ½ cup, 1.9-mg
Grits, white, enriched, quick, prepared with water, 1-cup, 1.5-mg
Raisins, seedless, packed, ½ cup, 1.5-mg
Whole wheat bread, 1-slice, 0.9-mg
White bread, enriched, 1-slice, 0.9-mg

Iron Tea
1-oz yellow dock Rumex crispus root
1-oz dandelion Taraxacum officinale root
1-oz nettle Urtica dioica
1-oz watercress Nasturtium officinale
1-oz parsleyPetroselinum crispum

Blend the dandelion and yellow dock roots together and weight out half an ounce of the blended roots. You may need to coarsely chop or even grind the roots depending on how whole they are. Use half an ounce of the blended dandelion and yellow dock roots and half a pint of water to prepare a decoction.
Blend the nettle, watercress, and parsley and weight out half an ounce of the blended herbs. While the dandelion/yellow dock decoction is still hot, pour it over half an ounce of the nettle/watercress/parsley blend and infuse for 10 minutes. Store for no more than 24 hours in the refrigerator.
Drink one-half cup two or three times a day. If these measurements will make too much tea, you can use one teaspoon of herb or root to one cup of water to prepare each component. This will leave you with just under two cups of finished tea.





References:
See http://dietary-supplements.info.nih.gov/factsheets/iron.asp#en1 for more information.
[2] Looker AC; Dallman PR; Carroll MD; Gunter EW; Johnson CL. Prevalence of iron deficiency in the United States. JAMA, 1997 Mar, 277:12, 973-6
[3] U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. 2003. USDA Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 16. Nutrient Data Laboratory Home Page, http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp. Note that the preparation methods noted are those used by the USDA researchers. They are not necessarily the best preparation method for nutrient preservation.
[4] Institute of Medicine National Academy of Sciences. Dietary Reference Intakes for Vitamin A, Vitamin K, Arsenic, Boron, Chromium, Copper, Iodine, Iron, Manganese, Molybdenum, Nickel, Silicon, Vanadiam and 2001, 2002. Accessed at www.nap.edu
[5] CDC Recommendations to prevent and control iron deficiency in the United States. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. MMWR Recomm Rep 1998;47:1-29.
[6] Ziaei S, Norrozi M, Faghihzadeh S, et al. A randomised placebo-controlled trial to determine the effect of iron supplementation on pregnancy outcome in pregnant women with haemoglobin > or = 13.2 g/dl. BJOG. 2007 Jun;114(6):684-8.
[7] Natural Standard Research Collaboration: The Authority on Integrative Medicine. www.naturalstandard.com.
[8] Corbett JV. Accidental poisoning with iron supplements. MCN Am J Matern Child Nurs 1995;20:234.
[9] Institute of Medicine. Food and Nutrition Board. Dietary Reference Intakes for Vitamin A, Vitamin K, Arsenic, Boron, Chromium, Copper, Iodine, Iron, Manganese, Molybdenum, Nickel, Silicon, Vanadium and Zinc. Washington, DC: National Academy Press, 2001.
[10] Institute of Medicine. Food and Nutrition Board. Dietary Reference Intakes for Vitamin A, Vitamin K, Arsenic, Boron, Chromium, Copper, Iodine, Iron, Manganese, Molybdenum, Nickel, Silicon, Vanadium and Zinc. Washington, DC: National Academy Press, 2001
[11] Institute of Medicine. Food and Nutrition Board. Dietary Reference Intakes for Vitamin A, Vitamin K, Arsenic, Boron, Chromium, Copper, Iodine, Iron, Manganese, Molybdenum, Nickel, Silicon, Vanadium and Zinc. Washington, DC: National Academy Press, 2001.

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