11 replies to this topic

[Anthony_Loera]

Here's a blurb from an NPA email I get. I figure it's just another good reason for children's supplements...

Iron Deficiency in Early Childhood in the United States Linked to Overweight and Behavioral and Cognitive Delays…

Iron deficiency affects 2.4 million U.S. children, and childhood iron-deficiency anemia is associated with behavioral and cognitive delays. Given the detrimental long-term effects and high prevalence of iron deficiency, its prevention in early childhood is an important public health issue. A recent article reports that data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey IV for U.S. children one to three years old were analyzed for iron-status to identify factors associated with iron deficiency. The authors concluded that toddlers who are overweight and not in day care are at high risk for iron deficiency. Hispanic toddlers are more likely than white and black toddlers to be overweight and not in day care. The higher prevalence of these risk factors among Hispanic toddlers may account for their increased prevalence of iron deficiency.

(Pediatrics, volume 120, number 3, September 2007, pages 568-575)

[dannov]

Hm, what are some high-iron foods? I know that red meat is, what of veggies and fruits?

[stephen_b]

Spinach is (good luck getting your kids to eat it though ), but I've read that it's perhaps less bioavailable than red meat. As an adult, I try avoiding red meat because of the iron in it.

Stephen

[Anthony_Loera]

I know we should let our kids eat the regular foods.

My son loves chicken and meat, but we do give him a little vitamin tablet as well. The doc says he is in the 90% percentile in growth, so although he is 3 months shy of being 2, he appears to be as tall as a 2 1/2 year old or a bit more...

I am not sure if it's the vitamins we started him on, after he was born (because of an initial issue with iron)... but he has grown pretty darn well since then.

A

[dannov]

Good to hear Anthony!

Spinach is actually pretty good, though I am not a fan of canned (though I hear canned retains the most nutrients), just frozen and regular. Throw a little lemon and parmesan in, and you're good to go. ^_^

[protoject]

Better yet, I've been blending a big bunch of spinach in with my morning smoothies (frozen ripe banana, peanut butter, almond milk)...

not sure how much this does for iron but I'm betting the folate is good for working in conjunction with the iron.

 

Not only is folate important for iron deficiency but also vitamin a.

I feel that when I take vitamin a and folate with iron, I have a much better response to it. However you have to be careful with vitamin a. I take supplement of the animal form of vitamin a, but it's a bit high so I usually expect side effects and take it every few days / twice a week rather than every day.

 

Of course if you can find a low reasonable dose of animal vitamin a then go for it..

 

There are studies showing that vitamin a can help significantly with iron deficiency anemia.

Personally I feel like I get better effects from supplementing than just eating meat. But I don't really eat liver or anything much.. and don't pay attention to how much vitamin a im getting from meat generally.

[Dorian Grey]

Iron may be good for growing children and menstruating females but let's not forget as we reach middle age iron often becomes a "Malignant Spirit in Successful Aging"

 

http://www.ncbi.nlm....pubmed/12437994

 

Iron as the malignant spirit in successful ageing

 

"Iron enhances the production of the highly reactive and toxic hydroxyl radical, thus stimulating oxidative damage. Iron has been associated with a number of oxidative injury-dependent, age-related conditions and diseases. Indeed, oxidative injury is a major factor of (accelerated) ageing. This commentary reviews part of the existing literature on iron's deleterious effects, particularly in the context of ischemia-reperfusion injury and cardiovascular, brain and muscle diseases as well as skin ageing. Furthermore, the advantages of iron chelation are presented. Indeed, iron chelation or deprivation has been shown to act as a potent anti-oxidant in a variety of animal models of human diseases, preventing oxidative stress to tissues and organs. Iron chelators favor successful ageing in general, and when applied topically, successful skin ageing. It has also been proposed that gender-related differences in iron status are responsible for the increased longevity of women as compared to men. Despite this evidence, the role of iron in ageing and the possibilities of pharmacologically targeting iron have remained essentially unexplored. Iron thus appears as the "malignant spirit" in successful ageing."

Edited by synesthesia, 22 April 2014 - 06:32 PM.

[stephen_b]

Not all adults are iron replete though. Runners for example can loose iron by "foot strike hemolysis" (article).

[blood]

Not all adults are iron replete though. Runners for example can loose iron by "foot strike hemolysis" (article).

 

I'm wondering if I might have induced in myself a mild iron deficiency through chronic consumption of high amounts of polyphenols (curcumin, grape seed extract, pycnogenol, etc) during the past year. Recently I've noticed difficulty in concentrating (never been a problem before). Difficulty in concentrating is of course a symptom of iron deficiency (it's a symptom of many other things also). I should mention that I have rarely eaten meat over the past decade for health & ethical reasons (I'd eat animal flesh maybe 10 times/year). On a whim I purchased & consumed a large amount of beef and chicken last week. I've noticed a large (dramatic) improvement in my concentration and mental stamina following several days of meat eating. I feel more alert. Oddly, my blood pressure is less labile (doesn't bounce around as much). (A quick/sloppy pubmed  search tells me that severe iron deficiency is linked to increased sympathetic tone/drive and cardiovascular disease. Didn't see any evidence that a mild deficiency could impact on blood pressure.) Loud/annoying noises don't seem to grate on me as much. On the negative side, my night time insomnia has returned (finding it harder to mentally switch off at night). I'm going to get my ferritin tested next week. It seems plausible (I guess) that I might have pushed my iron levels too low, by chronic consumption of molecules that e.g., bind with iron preventing it's absorption in the context of a mostly vegetarian diet.

Edited by blood, 23 April 2014 - 05:07 AM.

[blood]

it's

its

[0010]

I know we should let our kids eat the regular foods.

My son loves chicken and meat, but we do give him a little vitamin tablet as well. The doc says he is in the 90% percentile in growth, so although he is 3 months shy of being 2, he appears to be as tall as a 2 1/2 year old or a bit more...

I am not sure if it's the vitamins we started him on, after he was born (because of an initial issue with iron)... but he has grown pretty darn well since then.

A

Make sure it contains no to very little vitamin A as it can cause premature epiphyseal closure. 

[protoject]

Is there a reason someone downvoted my post? I would really like to get educated if I'm missing something.