When it comes to eating fruits to supplement iron, are black grapes the best choice? Big misunderstanding...

As the temperature drops, symptoms such as cold hands and feet, pale face, dizziness, fatigue, and physical weakness often occur. Be careful as these are signs of iron deficiency anemia. When it comes to eating good foods to supplement iron, in fact, it’s not just meat that’s good for iron supplementation. Fruits are also very effective in supplementing iron. Most people think that black grapes have the highest iron content among all fruits. Is this true? Let’s listen to a nutritionist’s analysis of the top 10 iron-rich fruits.

The occurrence of iron deficiency anemia is mainly due to the defective synthesis of hemoglobin caused by iron deficiency, resulting in a decrease in hemoglobin in red blood cells in the blood. When the hemoglobin in the human body is lower than normal, it is called anemia, and iron deficiency anemia is the most common.

Iron deficiency anemia can cause cold hands and feet

As for why iron deficiency anemia causes cold hands and feet? Nutritionist You Weiming pointed out that iron is an important raw material for red blood cells, which are responsible for carrying oxygen to every cell in the body and performing energy metabolism to generate heat to maintain a constant body temperature. If a person has poor blood circulation, cardiovascular disease, or hemoglobin deficiency, when there is not enough blood flowing through the extremities farther from the heart, the palms or feet will turn dark purple due to lack of oxygen, and the hands and feet will become cold.

Since the life span of red blood cells is about 120 days, the body will continuously produce red blood cells. Therefore, the raw material for producing red blood cells, "iron", is very important. You should consume more foods containing iron in your diet. Especially in winter when the weather gets colder, the body's blood vessels contract and it is very easy to have cold hands and feet. The elderly and women are more prone to this disease and need to pay special attention to the warning signals from the body.

Top 10 fruits with the highest iron content

Speaking of iron-rich foods, in fact, in addition to meat, you can also get iron by eating fruits. Most people often think that when it comes to iron-rich fruits, black fruits must have higher iron content than red fruits. Nutritionist You Weiming said that according to the Food and Drug Administration's Food Nutrition Facts Database, the iron content per 100 grams of fruit was compared. The results showed that the top 10 fruits are: No. 1 pitaya (red flesh), No. 2 passion fruit, No. 3 pitaya (white flesh), No. 4 persimmon, No. 5 banana, No. 6 cantaloupe, No. 7 strawberry, No. 8 grafted pear, No. 9 pineapple, and No. 10 orange. According to the Food Nutrition Database (new edition) of the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the iron content of the top 20 common fruits in China is known, so black fruits are not necessarily higher in iron.

Comparison of iron content in fruits:

Red dragon fruit has the highest iron content

Nutritionist You Weiming pointed out that according to the Ministry of Health and Welfare's Food Nutrition Database (new edition), every 100 grams of red dragon fruit contains 1.44 mg of iron. According to the latest DRIs, the recommended daily iron intake for men aged 19 to 50 is 10 mg and for women is 15 mg. The recommended daily iron intake for men and women over 51 years old is the same, 10 mg.

Reminder: If you want to supplement iron by simply eating fruits, it will cause excessive sugar intake, which is not suitable for patients with poor blood sugar control. The correct way to supplement iron is to follow the national daily dietary guidelines. The recommended daily intake of fruits is 2 to 4 servings (each serving is about 80% full of the bowl). The insufficient iron should be obtained from other foods.

Balanced intake of other iron-rich foods

Good sources of iron include seafood, livestock, etc. from animals, dry beans (red beans, black beans, edamame) and vegetables (sweet potato leaves, red amaranth, spinach), etc. from plants. People must consume a balanced variety of foods to ensure adequate iron intake. The elderly and women in particular need to pay more attention to their daily diet.

Increase the effect of iron supplementation by eating wisely

Studies have confirmed that vitamin C helps increase iron absorption rate by 3 to 4 times, so eating a serving of high-iron fruit (8 bowls of red dragon fruit) after a meal can achieve the iron-supplementing effect of 1+1 being greater than 2. People should be aware that the tannic acid in strong tea and coffee will combine with iron to form an insoluble iron-tannin complex, which will reduce the body's ability to absorb iron, so try to avoid strong tea and coffee before and after meals. Without the advice of a nutritionist or doctor, people should never take iron supplements on their own. Excessive iron intake can cause constipation at the very least, and irritate the gastrointestinal mucosa and cause bleeding at the worst.