Level up your iron | World Iron Awareness Week
Iron deficiency remains an ongoing issue for many New Zealanders, with many unaware they have low iron levels. To celebrate World Iron Awareness Week we've created a video to help you 'level up your iron' and boost your iron absorption.
Learn more about World Iron Awareness Week here: https://www.ironweek.co.nz/
Here are some related iron tips:
EAT RED MEAT AND VEGETABLE TOGETHER
Eat a combination of red meat and plant foods (vegetables, wholegrains, legumes, fruits). Eating meat with plant foods will also help the body absorb more of the non-haem iron by up to four times. Examples of iron-rich meals include meat and vegetable stir-fry, a meat sauce with pasta and vegetables, or a lean meat and salad sandwich.
GET PLENTY OF VITAMIN C
Vitamin C helps the body to absorb non-haem iron from a meal – the type of iron found in plant foods and a proportion of animal foods. Include plenty of fruit and vegetables with your meals that are a good source of vitamin C (e.g. capsicum, broccoli, cauliflower, tomato and citrus fruits).
NOT ALL IRON IS EQUAL
There are two types of iron in food: haem iron (found in red meat, poultry, seafood) and non-haem iron (found in both plant and animal foods). The body absorbs the haem iron in animal foods more efficiently than the non-haem iron in plant foods. For example 1 cup of cooked silverbeet contains 0.4mg of iron, but the body can only use about 5-12% of this. In comparison, 120g of cooked lean beef rump contains 3.5mg of iron and the body absorbs around 15-25% of it. You would need to eat a massive 19 cups of cooked silverbeet to get the same amount of absorbable iron provided by a serve of 120g of lean beef rump steak. Both provide a third of a women’s daily absorbable iron needs. Other examples for an iron boost include a moderate serving of spaghetti bolognaise or a couple small lamb leg steaks.
SEE RED
Red meats are generally richer in haem iron than white meat, poultry and fish, with the redder the meat often having the higher iron content. The Ministry of Health suggests adults can have up to 500g of cook, lean red meat per week.
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