Diet & Fitness

Caution: People should not supplement with iron unless diagnosed with iron deficiency, because taking iron when it isn’t needed has no benefit and may be harmful.

Before iron deficiency can be treated, it must be diagnosed and the cause must be found by a doctor. In addition to addressing the cause (e.g., avoiding aspirin, treating a bleeding ulcer, etc.), supplementation with iron is the primary way to resolve iron-deficiency anemia.

If a doctor diagnoses iron deficiency, iron supplementation is essential. Though some doctors use higher amounts, a common daily dose for adults is 100 mg per day. Even though symptoms of deficiency should disappear much sooner, iron deficient people usually need to keep supplementing with iron for six months to one year until the ferritin test is completely normal. Even after taking enough iron to overcome the deficiency, some people with recurrent iron deficiency—particularly some premenopausal women—need to continue to supplement with smaller levels of iron, such as the 18 mg present in most multivitamin-mineral supplements. This need for continual iron supplementation even after deficiency has been overcome should be determined by a doctor.

 

Liver extracts from beef are a rich natural source of many vitamins and minerals, including iron. Bovine liver extracts provide the most absorbable form of iron—heme iron—as well as other nutrients critical in building blood, including vitamin B12 and folic acid. Liver extracts can contain as much as 3–4 mg of heme iron per gram.

 

Taurine has been shown, in a double-blind study, to improve the response to iron therapy in young women with iron-deficiency anemia.² The amount of taurine used was 1,000 mg per day for 20 weeks, given in addition to iron therapy, but at a different time of the day. The mechanism by which taurine improves iron utilization is not known.

 

Taking vitamin A and iron together has been reported to help overcome iron deficiency more effectively than iron supplements alone.³ Although the optimal amount of vitamin A needed to help people with iron deficiency has yet to be established, some doctors recommend 10,000 IU per day.

Caution: People who are not diagnosed with iron deficiency should not supplement with iron. Taking iron when it isn’t needed has no benefit and may do some harm.

Vitamin C increases the absorption of non-heme iron.⁴ Some doctors advise iron-deficient people to take vitamin C (typically 100–500 mg) at the same time as their iron supplement.⁵

 

A high degree of association between iron-deficiency anemia and vitamin D deficiency in Asian children has been previously reported.⁶ In three different ethnic groups living in England, iron-deficiency anemia was found to be a significant risk factor for low vitamin D levels in children.⁷ These findings suggest that children with iron-deficiency anemia should be screened for vitamin D deficiency and be given vitamin D supplements if necessary.