6 MISTAKES IN IRON SUPPLEMENTS
Iron-deficiency anemia is so common in many countries in the world. It
is due to some of the following misconceptions in diet that cause the disease:
1. Having
too much meat is not good for health
Some women
heard from advertisements that hazardous substances in meat would bring adverse
impacts on one’s health. Consequently, they only focus on dietary intake of
vegetables, leading to too little consumption of animal source foods that
contain iron.
In fact, foods of
animal origin not only contain rich content of iron but they are also easy to
absorb, with absorptive capacity of 25%. On the other hand, iron in plant foods
influenced by phytic acid and oxalate contained in such foods has lower
absorptive capacity of around 3%. Thus, abstaining from meat will lead to
iron-deficiency anemia. Instead, daily intake of vegetables and meat must be well-balanced.
2. Eggs,
milk are tonic to people with anemia
Cow’s milk is
nutrious but has very low-iron content with the absorption rate of only 10%. For
instance, a baby who is fed by cow’s milk will suffer from iron-deficiency
amenia if his/her mother forgets to supplement other nutrious foods.
Egg yolks have a
relatively high content of iron but owns even a lower absorption rate of 3%.
Thus, they can not be a good source of iron intake. Furthermore, some proteins
in egg yolks can inhibit iron absorption of our bodies. In all, despite high
nutrient levels, cow’s milk and egg yolks are not sufficient for iron
supplement. Animal liver, on the other hand, not only contains a high level of
iron but its absorptive rate also stays high at over 30%, which is very
suitable for replenishment of iron.
3. Vegetables
and fresh fruits are superfluous in iron supplement
Little do many
people know that great intake of vegetables and fresh fruits are useful in iron
supplement. It is because in these foods exists several organic acids of vitamin
C, citric acid, malic acid that can be associated with iron to formulate iron
compounds, thereby increasing the solubility of iron in our guts for further
absorption.
4. Much
coffee and tea are harmless
For women in
general, having too much coffee and tea can result in iron-deficiency anemia.
It is acidum tannicum in tea leaf and polyphenol substances in coffee that can
be associated with iron to formulate slightly soluble salt compound, inhibiting
iron absorption consequently. Thus, women should have an adequate amount of
coffee and tea, in which 1-2 cups of them per day are reasonable.
5. Once
anemia gets improved, intake of iron pills
can be halted
Ceasing intake of
iron pills once anemia gets improved is a wrongdoing. This can make anemia to
occur again.
The best
treatment, however, is that after the situation has been improved, another 6-8
weeks of continual iron pill intake must be maintained to supplement
accumulated iron levels in the body.
6. Brown
sugar is a blood tonic
Legend has it that
brown sugar liquor is a blood tonic which is often drunk by women during
menstruation and postpartum period. However, it has been indicated by studies that
brown sugar is not so magical as the word of mouth about it.
Brown sugar does
not have magical effects such as “promote blood circulation”, “promote faster
uterine contractions, eliminate congestion after birth giving”, said experts.
In fact, brown sugar is not composed of any blood tonic components. Otherwise,
improper processing of brown sugar can contain unhealthy impurities.
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