Are you pumping enough iron? We’re not talking weights in the gym, but pumping the right amounts of the mineral iron in your blood.
Iron greatly supports the wellness or your blood and function of your circulatory system. Flowing through your bloodstream, about 70% of iron is used to make hemoglobin, the component of red blood cells that transports oxygen and removes carbon dioxide. Iron also helps manufacture hormones.
“It’s a vital mineral needed for growth and development,” said Lisa Soupir, CNP, an Avera internal medicine expert in Marshall, MN.
Iron deficiency can be related to anemia. You can be iron deficient, but not yet anemic, said Soupir.
When your body doesn’t have enough iron, the production of hemoglobin is greatly hindered. Without enough hemoglobin, your body can’t make enough red blood cells. One problem associated with anemia, or an inadequate amount of healthy red blood cells, is that less oxygen gets delivered throughout your body.
Healthy Iron Levels and Testing
Measured iron levels in healthy individuals should be:
- Adult men, a range between 70 to 175 mcg/dL
- Adult women, a range between 50 to 170 mcg/dL
- Children, 6 months–4 years, more than 110 mcg/dL
- Children, 5–11 years, more than 115 mcg/dL
- Teens, 12–14 years, more than 120 mcg/dL
Routine blood tests can evaluate levels of iron, serum ferritin and total iron-binding capacity in the blood. To detect anemia, the blood test should include a complete blood count (CBC).
What Causes Low Iron?
Things that lead to iron deficiency include:
- Foods that inhibit iron absorption include cocoa, coffee, tea and wine. “All the good stuff!” joked Soupir.
- A diet consistently lacking iron-rich foods
- The body’s increased requirement for iron; for example, pregnancy, breastfeeding or having your period
You won’t have normal iron levels one day, and low levels the next. These risk factors lower your iron over great chunks of time, from months to years.
Signs of Iron Deficiency
Symptoms of iron deficiency are about the same among individuals. Some of the biggest symptoms of lacking enough iron include:
- Fatigue
- Weakness
- Shortness of breath
- Headache
- Irritability
- Cold hands and feet
- Hair loss
- Paleness
- Itchy rash or red and purple dots on skin
Women can be even more susceptible to symptoms and risks because of their monthly periods, pregnancy or breastfeeding. Iron deficiency has been linked to infertility, low birth weight and even loss of baby.
Iron Recommendations
The following list recommends how many milligrams of iron you should be consuming daily:
- Adult men – 8 mg of iron/day
- Adult women – 18 mg of iron/day
- Children, 7–12 months – 11 mg of iron/day
- Children, 1–3 years – 7 mg of iron/day
- Children, 4–8 years – 10 mg of iron/day
- Children, 9–13 years – 8 mg of iron/day
- Teen boys – 11 mg of iron/day
- Teen girls – 15 mg of iron/day
- Pregnant women – 30 mg of iron/day
How to Increase Your Iron Through Food
To keep your iron up, you should eat iron-rich foods every day.
Ways you can increase your iron intake include:
- Meat, particularly red meat, liver, seafood and poultry
- Whole grains, legumes, nuts, dried fruits such as raisins and dates
- Green, leafy vegetables especially broccoli, kale and spinach
- Iron-fortified cereals
- Taking a multivitamin which includes iron
Examples of Foods with Iron
- 3 oz. beef – 2.5 mg iron
- 1 cup cooked spinach – 6.4 mg iron
- ½ cup cooked lentils – 3.3 mg iron
- 1 cup cooked sweet potato – 1.8 mg iron
- 1 cup 100% prune juice – 3.0 mg iron
- 1 oz. cashews – 1.9 mg iron
- ¾ cup ready-to-eat cereal, bran flakes, fortified – 8.4 mg iron
- ½ cup ready-to-eat cereal, whole grain kernels, fortified – 16.2 mg iron
- 1 cup hot wheat cereal, fortified – 12.8 mg iron
Other Ways to Increase Iron
If you’ve been diagnosed with low iron, your provider may recommend an iron supplement. A prescription or over the counter, ferrous sulfate is available as tablets, capsules or oral drops. Taking it with vitamin C increases absorption rate.
After a few months of treatment, your blood should be tested again to detect progress in your treatment plan.
Another option for iron deficiency anemia is intravenous iron infusion therapy — an ideal option for a variety of reasons. Some of these include an inability to absorb enough iron in the gut or in the blood due to blood loss.
Your provider can help you navigate iron consumption and treatment based on your age and iron needs.
Schedule a Blood Test
If you’re concerned about iron deficiency, talk to your primary care or internal medicine provider. You may be scheduled for a full blood panel by your local Avera lab.
