Should You Take Iron With Vitamin C?
This pairing has long been thought to help your body better
absorb iron
Everyone needs a best buddy. There’s Bert and Ernie, Goose and
Maverick, Bill and Ted … and iron and vitamin C!
Remember the song lyrics, “I get by with a little help from
my friends”? Vitamin C is the supportive pal that iron needs, helping your body
absorb enough iron to keep you healthy.
And that’s pretty important because, well, iron is pretty
important. It plays a variety of critical roles, like carrying oxygen in your
blood, providing you with energy and improving your brain function. But when
your body can’t get enough iron out of the iron-rich foods that you eat, adding
vitamin C to the equation (aka your meal) can actually help you better absorb
iron.
How vitamin C helps iron absorption
Lots of foods have iron in them. But there are two types of
iron: Heme iron, which is found in animal foods like meat, seafood and poultry,
is easier for your body to absorb. Your body has a harder time absorbing
non-heme iron, the type found in plant-based foods.
“Some plant foods, like beans or spinach, have non-heme iron
in them, but there are other properties of the plant that make that iron less
available to us,” says registered dietitian Devon Peart, RD, MHSc.
But vitamin C can help.
“Consuming foods that are high in vitamin C at the same meal
with iron-rich plant foods boosts the bioavailability of iron,” she explains.
“This means you absorb more of it.”
The scientific explanation for all of this is very, well,
scientific and can be difficult to understand if you’re not a scientist or a
medical provider. But for nutrition purposes, it’s enough to know that your
body sometimes has a hard time absorbing the iron found in plant-based foods —
even though that iron is very important to your overall health.
The solution? When you eat an iron-rich food, make sure to
pair it with a vitamin C-rich food. Best friends stick together after all!
Foods that are high in vitamin C include:
Citrus fruits.
Cruciferous vegetables.
Red peppers.
Strawberries.
Tomatoes.
White potatoes.
Vegans and vegetarians are at risk for low iron
“If you don’t eat any foods of animal origin, you may have
an especially hard time getting enough iron,” Peart warns.
It all goes back to heme versus non-heme iron. Heme iron is
easiest for your body to absorb, but it’s found in animal products — and of
course, if you don’t eat animal products, you don’t have access to that easily
absorbed heme iron.
If you follow a vegan or vegetarian diet or just don’t eat
much meat, you have to rely mostly or solely on non-heme iron, which is found
in foods like:
Tofu.
Tempeh.
Beans.
Black-eyed peas.
Chickpeas.
Dark, leafy greens.
Lentils.
Iron-fortified bread and cereal.
Not getting enough iron in your diet can lead to
iron-deficiency anemia, a blood disorder that can cause fatigue,
light-headedness and other symptoms
Can vitamin C help with anemia?
“If you’re not getting enough iron, your healthcare provider
may recommend dietary changes or an iron supplement,” Peart says. Providers
have typically suggested taking an iron supplement with a glass of orange juice
because it’s — you guessed it — rich in vitamin C.
But at least one recent study suggests that for people with
anemia, pairing vitamin C with iron may not help as much as previously thought.
In 2020, a randomized clinical trial of nearly 500 people with iron-deficiency
anemia found that taking iron supplements alone was just as helpful as taking
iron supplements with vitamin C.
If you suspect that you’re not able to get enough iron in
your diet — like if you don’t eat meat and are feeling very lethargic — make an
appointment to chat with a healthcare provider.
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“Iron supplements can cause digestive upset or constipation,
so get guidance from a doctor before you start taking a supplement,” Peart
advises.
How to get enough iron
Most people need 8 to 18 milligrams (mg) of iron daily,
though Peart explains that because much of the iron we consume isn’t absorbed,
it’s not always that straightforward.
“Supplements might have 26 mg for the daily amount, or even
up to 150 mg,” she says, “so people might think they need to supplement with,
say, 8 mg, but it would not be enough.”
Instead, it’s always better to get your vitamins and
nutrients through food than through supplements. When you eat a plant food
that’s rich in iron, focus on pairing it with something that’s high in vitamin
C, which will help give your body an assist on absorption.
“If you’re having spinach salad, for example, try sprinkling
some lemon juice, or adding vitamin C-rich strawberries, orange segments or red
peppers,” Peart suggests. “All of these will help boost absorption of iron from
the spinach.”
Here are some other ideas:
Blend a handful of strawberries into a spinach-packed
smoothie.
Add tomatoes to a lentil-based dish, like these Lentils With
Roasted Curry Tomatoes.
Scoop up chickpea hummus with slices of red bell pepper.
Pair tofu with broccoli for a flavorful vegetarian stir-fry.