Forums: September 2011 Kickstart Forum: Iron and breakfast cereal
Created on: 09/08/11 06:08 PM Views: 1051 Replies: 5
DMcSF Joined: 09/08/11 Posts: 4	Iron and breakfast cereal Posted Thursday, September 8, 2011 at 6:08 PM I eat Multigrain Cheerios because 1 cup has 100% rda of iron and b12. I usually eat the cereal with 2/3 cup fortified almond milk and 1/2 cup fresh blueberries. I read that calcium supplements and tannins in coffee and tea inhibit absorption of non-heme iron. Will the calcium (found in the fortified Cheerios and the fortified almond milk) and the tannins in the blueberry skins keep me from absorbing iron from the cereal?
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Susan Levin Joined: 12/26/09 Posts: 1191	RE: Iron and breakfast cereal Posted Friday, September 9, 2011 at 6:44 AM Iron is a pretty powerful mineral. And non-heme iron (from plants) is a very smart mineral. If you need it, it will usually find a way to get absorbed. Heme iron (from animals) will absorb whether you need it or not. Remember, while your cereal may have 100 percent of your iron needs for the day, it will not be your only source of iron in the day if you are eating a variety of grains, vegetables, and legumes. Believe it or not, vegetarians and vegans tend to eat more iron than meat-eaters throughout the day without trying. Susan Levin, MS, RD PCRM Director of Nutrition Education
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DMcSF Joined: 09/08/11 Posts: 4	RE: Iron and breakfast cereal Posted Friday, September 9, 2011 at 11:24 AM Thank you that's good to know. My ferritin is 26 ng/mL, so I want to make sure that I'm getting enough iron. I eat beans and whole grains every day (and leafy greens as often as possible), so the fortified cereal is kind of a vitamin "bonus". I appreciate your taking the time to reply- I really enjoy the Kickstart program, and I love learning about optimum nutrition. Thanks again!
	Edited 09/09/11 11:27 AM Quote | Send PM | Link | Top | Bottom
Bugsmom Joined: 09/13/10 Posts: 2072	RE: Iron and breakfast cereal Posted Friday, September 9, 2011 at 12:33 PM and try to get your leafy greens with citrus or other acid (like tomato) - it helps the iron be better absorbed. Spinach and tomato with pasta for instance. --Deb R
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DMcSF Joined: 09/08/11 Posts: 4	RE: Iron and breakfast cereal Posted Friday, September 9, 2011 at 12:50 PM Good point! This is from the Vegetarian Resource Group website (www.vrg.org): "Another reason for the satisfactory iron status of vegans is that vegan diets are high in vitamin C. Vitamin C acts to markedly increase absorption of non-heme iron. Adding a vitamin C source to a meal increases non-heme iron absorption up to six-fold which makes the absorption of non-heme iron as good or better than that of heme iron. Fortunately, many vegetables, such as broccoli and bok choy, which are high in iron, are also high in vitamin C so that the iron in these foods is very well absorbed. Commonly eaten combinations, such as beans and tomato sauce or stir-fried tofu and broccoli, also result in generous levels of iron absorption."
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Bugsmom Joined: 09/13/10 Posts: 2072	RE: Iron and breakfast cereal Posted Saturday, September 10, 2011 at 9:13 AM Yup, thanks for the additional info. Which also underscores why eating foods as close to how they started out (can you identify what it is by looking at it) is helpful. Many plant foods are designed to contain what we might call "complementary" nutrients - iron rich foods that also contain vitamin C which helps with absorbing the iron, as in this example. --Deb R
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