Iron in Diet
What food source is the nutrient found in?
Iron can be found in both animals and plants in two forms. Heme iron is found in meat, fish, and poultry. The best source is lean red meat. This is the easiest form of iron for the body to use and absorb.
Non-heme iron is found in plant foods. The body has a harder time absorbing iron from plants. Foods rich in vitamin C, such as citrus fruits, strawberries, and broccoli, improve iron absorption, especially non-heme iron.
Different foods have different amounts of iron. The following are examples of animal foods that contain heme iron:
liver and braised beef (3.5 oz. serving) = 6.8 mg iron
broiled short loin or T-bone steak (3.5 oz. serving) = 3.2 mg iron
well-done baked ground beef (3.5 oz. serving) = 3.0 mg iron
cooked shrimp (3 oz. serving or 15 large shrimp) = 2.6 mg iron
chicken, dark meat, roasted with skin (3.5 oz. serving) = 1.4 mg iron
turkey, light meat, roasted without skin (3.5 oz. serving) = 1.4 mg iron
Some good sources of plant iron, or non-heme iron, are as follows:
spinach, boiled (1/2 cup) = 3.2 mg iron
kidney beans, red, boiled (1 cup) = 5.2 mg iron
potato, baked with skin (1 large) = 2.7 mg iron
noodles, egg, enriched, cooked (1 cup) = 2.5 mg iron
rice, white, enriched, cooked (1 cup) = 1.9 mg iron
rice, long grain, brown, cooked (1 cup) = 0.82 mg iron
raisins, seedless (2/3 cup) = 2.1 mg iron
broccoli, boiled (1/2 cup) = 0.66 mg iron
egg, boiled, hard/soft (1 large) = 0.59 mg iron
How does the nutrient affect the body?
Iron plays an important part in keeping people healthy. Iron is vital to how cells make energy. It is an essential part of hemoglobin, which helps carry oxygen in blood from the lungs to every body cell. It is needed to make new cells, proteins, hormones, and substances necessary for nerve functioning. Iron helps protect the body from infections because it is a part of an enzyme in the immune system.
Iron also helps to convert beta-carotene to vitamin A. Vitamin A helps produce tissues that hold the body together.
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