It was a bit of a surprise to me not being able to donate blood & platelets twice last year due to low iron levels, being borderline anemic.
Following this, not thinking much of it at first, it wasn’t until I had extreme bouts of fatigue and having a higher heart rate than normal when exercising I started to put the dots together. Taking my time, as men do, I went to the GP for more bloods and a year after my first deferral I was still on the low side for iron levels.
This peaked my interest and started having a look into the most likely causes of anemia, with iron deficient anemia being the most common. This is where a lack of iron within your dietary intake leads to a depletion of your small iron stores. With iron a key building block for making red blood cells that transport oxygen around the body via the blood, as well as important roles with your immune system, it has a noticeable impact on your energy levels.
Assuming that iron deficient anemia was the most likely cause, and one that I could have an immediate impact on via diet, I done some research with some interesting finds in how to boost iron intake and absorption via dietary intervention. This is what I found most interesting:
You can gain iron within your diet from 2 forms, haem (animal tissue/meat) and non-haem (non animal tissue). Haem sources of iron are the easiest absorbed, with the best sources being red meats (beef & lamb), liver, some fish and shellfish. White meats like turkey and chicken are good sources, as well as eggs, but contain less Iron than alternative red meats. Non-haem aren’t absorbed as quickly but good sources being dark green vegetables, pulses (beans, peas & lentils), dried fruit, nuts, fortified cereals & breads.
I am not a vegan or a vegetarian and don’t avoid greens & veg, so dietary wise no obvious reasons why I may be deficient. However looking a bit deeper there are a few other tips to increase your absorption of iron:
Consuming heam and non-heam sources of iron at the same time can boost the absorption of non- heam source compared to eating that source by itself
·Vitamin C also helps to increase the absorption of Iron. Good sources of Vit C are (grapefruit, lemons & oranges, blackcurrants, kiwi fruit, tomatoes, cabbage, new potatoes, cucumber, lettuce and brightly coloured vegetables like peppers, apricots, carrots, squash, corn, sweet potato) .
Iron absorption is reduced by:
Large quantities of milk & dairy foods
Fizzy drinks
Too many high fibre cereals
Caffeine (from tea & coffee)
Antacid medication for indigestion
Considering the above the best practical ways to boost dietary iron and absorption via your dietary intake are:
Try to restrict having caffeinated drinks an hour before or until an hour after eating iron containing foods. This can also be applied to fizzy drinks but better still cut these out of your diet if possible.
Try to include at least 1 portion of red/white meat or fish in 1 of your meals daily.
Try to drink / eat foods rich in vitamin C in combination with iron containing foods. E.g. copped kiwi fruit/apricots on a Weetabix with almond/soy milk
Don’t overcook foods high in vitamin C as this breaks it down, destroys it and therefore won’t help iron absorption.
There are many other reasons that can contribute to becoming anemic, such as being on certain types of medication, stomach ulcers, bleeding internal or external, taking part in intense exercise, among many more. The general symptoms to look out for are lack of energy, shortness of breath, heart palpitations, headaches and paler than usual skin. For a more symptoms and info on anemia visit https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/iron-deficiency-anaemia/ and contact your GP for an appointment and professional diagnosis.
The above are good practices to ensure you have enough dietary iron and helps promote a healthy food intake generally, even if iron deficient anemia isn’t the sole cause of symptoms. For myself there was no conclusive reason from the investigations I had but I feel it was more likely a combination of a number of factors being: lack of sleep (thanks Wilbie) leading to a higher caffeine in diet intake, slipping into unhealthy dietary habits as a consequence, training harder for a race as well as the usual stressors of day-to-day life. Don’t underestimate the compound effects of the modern life has on our ‘simple’ yet very sensitive and complicated bodies. They do a great job at dealing with what we throw at them but sometimes it just can’t cope. Always take time to check in, step back and evaluate the bigger picture and hopefully adapt your lifestyle to overcome the issue.
For a holistic approach to health, fitness and performance for life then get in touch, whether it’s for personal training, soft tissue therapy of specific strength & conditioning. I am here to assist your to reach your potential in a bespoke service to meet your needs.
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