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Good sources of dietary iron include red meat, fish, poultry, lentils, beans, leaf vegetables, tofu, chickpeas, black-eyed peas, potatoes with skin, bread made from completely whole-grain flour, molasses, teff and farina. Iron in meat is more easily absorbed than iron in vegetables.

Iron provided by dietary supplements is often found as iron (II) fumarate, although iron sulfate is cheaper and is absorbed equally well. Elemental iron, despite being absorbed to a much smaller extent (stomach acid is sufficient to convert some of it to ferrous iron), is often added to foods such as breakfast cereals or "enriched" wheat flour (where it is listed as "reduced iron" in the list of ingredients). Iron is most available to the body when chelated to amino acids - iron in this form is ten to fifteen times more bioavailable than any other, and is also available for use as a common iron supplement. Often the amino acid chosen for this purpose is the cheapest and most common amino acid, glycine, leading to "iron glycinate" supplements. The RDA for iron varies considerably based on age, gender, and source of dietary iron (heme-based iron has higher bioavailability). Infants will require iron supplements if they are not breast-fed. Blood donors are at special risk of low iron levels and are often advised to supplement their iron intake.

Iron helps the body in many important processes. For example, it is an essential part of haemoglobin, the red pigment in our blood that allows it to carry oxygen around the body.

Deficiency of iron: If iron levels are low, the amount of haemoglobin in our red blood cells, as well as the number of red blood cells, is reduced. This is called anaemia.

Symptoms of iron deficiency can occur even before the condition has progressed to iron deficiency anaemia.

Symptoms of iron deficiency are not unique to iron deficiency (ie not pathognomonic). Iron is needed for many enzymes to function normally, so a wide range of symptoms may eventually emerge, either as the secondary result of the anemia, or as other primary results of iron deficiency. Symptoms of iron deficiency include:

Fatigue, Pallor, Irritability, Weakness, Pica.

Continued iron deficiency may progress to anemia and worsening fatigue. Thrombocytosis, or an elevated platelet count, can also result. A lack of iron in the blood is a reason that some people cannot donate blood.

All the tissues and cells in the body depend on oxygen to function properly; if they receive less oxygen, they won't work so well.

On average, adult men need 8.7mg of iron a day. For women the figure is 14.8mg.

Food sources of Iron

Iron deficiency can have serious health consequences that diet may not be able to quickly correct, and iron supplementation is often necessary if the iron deficiency has become symptomatic. However, mild iron deficiency can be corrected, and prevented, by eating iron-rich foods. Because iron is an absolute requirement for most of the earth's plants and animals, a wide range of food can provide iron. However, these foods are absorbed and processed differently by the body; for instance, iron from meat (heme iron source) is more easily broken down and absorbed than iron in grains (nonheme iron source), and minerals and chemicals in one type of food may inhibit absorption of iron from another type of food eaten at the same time. Because iron from plant sources is less easily absorbed than the heme-bound iron of animal sources, vegetarians and vegans should have a somewhat higher total daily iron intake than those who eat meat, fish or poultry. Legumes and dark-green leafy vegetables like broccoli, kale and oriental greens are especially good sources of iron for vegetarians and vegans. However, spinach and swiss chard contain oxalates which bind iron making it largely unavailable for absorption. Iron from nonheme sources is more readily absorbed if consumed with foods that contain either heme-bound iron or vitamin C.

Selected Food Sources of Heme Iron

Meals and snacks

The following suggestions for meals and snacks can help to boost your iron intake. They include foods that are rich in iron and foods that can help your body absorb it.

Breakfast

• fortified breakfast cereal, such as wholewheat biscuits with semi-skimmed milk
• poached egg, baked beans, grilled tomato, two reduced-fat sausages, wholemeal toast
• a glass of orange or grapefruit juice with one of these breakfasts

Lunch

• chicken salad (watercress, grilled lean chicken without the skin, tomatoes, raw grated carrot)
• sardines on wholemeal toast
• bean salad (chickpeas, red kidney beans, butter beans, onion, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, cucumber, tomato)
• pitta bread with houmous, red pepper and celery
• a glass of juice or a smoothie with one of these lunches

  Dinner

  • beef or vegetable stir-fry
  • low-fat grilled beefburger in a bun and oven chips
  • spaghetti bolognese with lamb mince, peas and kidney beans (for a vegetarian option use soya mince and lentils)
  • a glass of juice with the above or some fruit (fresh, frozen, tinned or dried) to follow

    Snacks

    • almonds
    • dried apricots or raisins
    • small bar of dark chocolate
    • slice of gingerbread cake
    • small flapjack

      See also: Dietary Reference Intakes: Elements (PDF).