Is beef the first choice for iron supplementation? These seafoods are also high in iron

"Eating beef and pork liver to supplement iron" seems to be deeply rooted in the general public's impression. In fact, if you consume too much meat, you may have to worry about the problem of excessive calories and fat. Nutritionists say that in addition to meat, people who are worried about accumulating too many calories may also consider carefully choosing seafood, especially clams, crabs, and oysters, which contain as much iron as beef and pork liver and are a good choice.

The prevalence of iron deficiency among Chinese people is about 13.3-15.0%, among which women aged 13-50 are at high risk; after entering old age, the prevalence of iron deficiency among men is slightly higher than that among women, at 4.8% and 3.7% respectively. However, many people are iron deficient without knowing it, especially rapidly growing adolescents and women during their menstrual cycle. If they experience symptoms such as fatigue, pale skin, and decreased immunity, they need to pay attention to whether they are iron deficient. If the serum ferritin in a blood test is <12μg/L or the transferrin saturation is <15%, it indicates iron deficiency and the iron intake needs to be increased.

Nutritionist Zheng Huiwen of New Nutrition said that iron deficiency can be supplemented with food in the early stage. Common iron-rich foods can be divided into animal sources and plant sources, including:

(1) Animal sources: liver, red meat, eggs, shellfish, etc.

(2) Plant sources: mainly algae, green vegetables and whole grains.

Since animal and plant sources of iron come in different forms, their absorption rates are also different. The iron from animal sources is in the form of hemoglobin iron, with an absorption rate of about 25%; but the iron from plant sources is in the form of non-hemoglobin iron, with an absorption rate of only about 5%. The absorption rate of iron will also be affected by dietary ingredients (such as tannins, oxalic acid, phytic acid and other ingredients that inhibit iron absorption), intestinal environment (such as the pH of the stomach and duodenum), and each person's iron nutritional status (such as anemia, growth and development period, pregnancy, etc.).

Animal iron-containing foods are often distributed in internal organs, red meat (myoglobin) and blood (hemoglobin), so the iron content in these three parts of animals is relatively rich.

The following table shows the iron content of common offal, meat and processed products (from high to low):

In comparison, every 100 grams of chicken breast contains only 0.5 mg. The difference is that chicken is a white meat, and because it contains less myoglobin, the iron content is also reduced.

However, red meat should not be eaten without restraint just because it is rich in iron. Studies have shown that as the intake of red meat increases, the risk of colorectal cancer will also increase. In addition, red meat is rich in saturated fat, and the American Heart Association recommends that the intake of saturated fat should be less than 10% of total calories. For example, for an adult who consumes 2,000 calories a day, the daily saturated fat content should not exceed 22 grams. If the long-term intake of saturated fat exceeds this limit, it is easy to increase blood cholesterol, lower good cholesterol (high-density cholesterol; HDL), and increase the risk of cardiovascular disease. Therefore, it is recommended that when eating beef to supplement iron, you can choose low-fat parts such as fillet, sirloin, and hind leg meat, and it is recommended that no more than two servings of red meat be consumed per day (one serving is about the size of three fingers).

Nutritionist Zheng Huiwen said that if you want to supplement iron, in addition to meat, carefully selecting seafood rich in iron, such as sea bass, crab, and oysters, is also a good choice! The following table shows common seafood foods rich in iron (from high to low):

In addition, seafood has less fat and calories than the above-mentioned meats, and is rich in the mineral "zinc", which is helpful for the immune system, activation of body enzymes, reproductive function, and wound healing.

Although some seafood is rich in iron, you still need to pay attention to the following points when eating it:

(1) Allergies: Some people are more sensitive to seafood. They can eat seafood in moderation, but eating too much seafood may cause allergic symptoms, such as redness, swelling, and itching of the skin.

(2) Heavy metal pollution: Due to the pollution of the marine environment, today's seafood is also worrying, so we must be careful when choosing the source.

(3) Food safety issues: Many people like to eat seafood raw, but if it is not properly refrigerated during storage, it is easy for Vibrio virulence to exceed the standard. If seafood is not fully heated, bacteria are easy to breed, which may cause food safety concerns. Therefore, it is recommended to eat seafood cooked.

Finally, nutritionist Zheng Huiwen kindly reminds that while supplementing iron, you can also take foods rich in vitamin C, such as guava, kiwi, and citrus fruits, to assist in iron absorption. At the same time, you should also avoid taking iron and calcium at the same time, otherwise the two nutrients will compete and inhibit each other, thereby reducing the absorption rate and failing to achieve the desired effect.