10 Foods Loaded With Iron

Food contains two forms of iron: heme iron and nonheme iron. Meat, fish, and poultry all contain heme iron. It is the most easily absorbed type of iron by your body. You absorb up to 30% of the heme iron you consume. In general, consuming meat raises your iron levels significantly more than ingesting non-heme iron. Plant-based foods rich in non-heme iron include fruits, vegetables, and nuts. Non-heme iron meals are still an important element of a nutritious, well-balanced diet, but the iron in these foods is not as readily absorbed. You absorb between 2% and 10% of the non-heme iron you consume.

When you combine heme iron with foods high in non-heme iron, your body absorbs the iron more fully. Vitamin C-rich foods, such as tomatoes, citrus fruits, and red, yellow, and orange peppers, can also aid in the absorption of nonheme iron.

The amount and kind of iron in your diet are critical. Iron-rich foods include:

1. Beef

A 3.5-ounce (100-gram) portion of ground beef contains 2.7 milligrams of iron, or 15% of the daily value. Meat also contains a lot of protein, zinc, selenium, and B vitamins. Iron deficiency may be less common in those who consume meat, poultry, and fish on a daily basis, according to researchers. In fact, red meat is likely the single most easily accessible source of heme iron, making it a potentially crucial food for persons who are prone to anemia. Women who fed meat maintained iron better than those who took iron supplements in one study that looked at changes in iron reserves following aerobic activity.