By Heide Creduer

Even though you eat well, it is possible that you are not including enough sources of iron in your diet, and you would not be alone. Iron deficiency is a worldwide crisis. In fact, as much as 80% of the population may be iron deficient. Crucial to the development of red blood cells, which deliver oxygen throughout the body, iron is also part of the process that governs cell growth and differentiation. A lack of iron can lead to fatigue and an immune system that is not running optimally.

How Much Iron Should You Be Getting?

If you have been diagnosed with iron deficiency or iron deficiency anemia, you should talk to your physician about the proper amount of iron intake in your situation. For healthy individuals, the recommended daily allowance (RDA) for iron is as follows:

• Babies 0-6 months .27 mg
• Babies 7-12 months 11 mg
• Children 1-3 years 7 mg
• Children 4-8 years 10 mg
• Males 9-13 years 8 mg
• Males 14-18 years 11 mg
• Males 19+ years 8 mg
• Females 9-13 years 8 mg
• Females 14-18 years 15 mg
• Females 19-50 years 18 mg
• Females 51-70+ years 8 mg
• Pregnant women 14-50 years 27 mg
• Lactating women14-18 years 10 mg
• Lactating women 19-50 years 9 mg

While this can be confusing, having the right amount of iron in your diet is vitally important, especially for unborn children.

Where Can you get Iron?

Iron comes in two forms, heme and non-heme. Heme iron is derived from meat products and is more absorbable than non-heme or plant derived iron. It is important to note that RDA’s assume that 75% of that is in the form of the more absorbable heme iron. In addition to heme iron supplements and many foods of which you may be aware of as being great sources of iron, there are many other sources that you may find surprising. Here are a few other iron sources:

• Aduki beans
• White kidney beans
• Flax seed
• Edamame (soy) beans
• Dry roasted pumpkin seed
• White Quinoa
• Black eyed peas
• Spinach (cooked 6.4 mg, raw .8 mg)
• Dried peaches
• Prune juice
• Milo
• Ovaltine
• Cocoa powder
• Licorice
• Cashews
• Muesli
• Leeks
• Dried apricots
• Radishes
• Pistachio nuts

Getting the proper amount of iron is much more difficult than most people realize. With a little effort to include some of these sources of iron listed above plus an iron supplement, it isn’t that difficult to get your full RDA for iron into even the most challenged diet.

Heide Creduer wanted to get her iron levels to a healthy level so she started taking heme iron supplements to help. For help maintain a healthy production of red blood cells, there is help with an iron supplement from Proferrin.