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Let's go for iron this winter

A citrus fruit with your daily intake of dal can meet your iron requirements

SPINACH Should be eaten with Vitamin C-rich foods

Iron is among the most common elements in the earth's crust; it is an integral part of most living cells, and is ubiquitous in the food we eat. Yet iron-deficiency anaemia is among the commonest of blood disorders in the world (around 30 per cent of the world's population may have it), and millions of Indian women are vulnerable to it.

The food we eat may be rich in iron, but that does not mean it will automatically enter the bloodstream. Iron's absorption into the body is tightly regulated because iron is so toxic to cells at even the slightest hint of excess. As far as absorption is concerned, there are basically two kinds of iron: haeme iron and non-haeme iron.

The former is found in meat — especially in red meat and liver. The gut avidly absorbs haeme iron. The quantity required to satisfy iron needs is very small - a few pieces per day.

The non-haeme kind, found in cereals, beans and lentils, is not so easily absorbed. This is why vegetarians are more likely to suffer from iron-deficiency anaemia than meat-eaters. Breastfed infants are less likely to suffer from iron deficiency when compared with formula-fed infants because the iron from breast milk is efficiently absorbed.

For vegetarians, spinach, beans and fortified cereals are the plant foods with the best bio-availability. Eating citrus fruits and foods rich in Vitamin C along with these foods further increases the bioavailability of iron. Milk is a great source of iron for infants, but Indian adults probably lose iron by drinking milk because milk, unlike curd, irritates adult stomachs that lack the enzymes to digest it. Tea, soybeans and calcium rich foods are great sources of nutrition and antioxidants, but they should not be consumed along with iron rich foods or iron supplements if you want to treat iron-deficiency. Iron need even in high-requirement groups like menstruating women and pregnant women is just a few mg every day.

An iron-rich diet tailored for vegetarians with routine requirements need not be expensive.

A few in-season Vitamin C-rich fruit per day along with the daily dal is all you need in most cases.

RAJIV. M

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