Micah Stanley
Iron deficiency is common. Those affected often do not succeed in remedying the deficiency with diet alone. Doctors prescribe iron supplements, which are often not well tolerated and lead to digestive problems. But there are also natural iron supplements. They are well tolerated and available without a prescription. In addition, holistic food supplements are available that are particularly rich in iron. In addition to iron, these provide many other vital substances. They increase the iron level sustainably and in a healthy way.
Natural iron supplements for iron deficiency – without a prescription and well tolerated
In the case of iron deficiency, iron preparations with e.g. B. prescribed ferrous sulfate. The usual side effects are stomach discomfort, nausea, vomiting, gas, and constipation. Taking these funds is therefore often anything but a pleasure.
Iron supplements are also often prescribed to pregnant women so that the side effects of the iron supplements are added to the pregnancy symptoms that often occur.
Unfortunately, iron preparations do not even improve iron values in every case, and long-term use is not necessarily an option given the side effects mentioned. In the meantime, however, there are natural and over-the-counter iron preparations that are also well tolerated and at the same time extremely effective.
Iron deficiency – the diagnosis with the home test
If you are not sure whether you are suffering from an iron deficiency, your family doctor will usually be your first port of call. He can quickly find out how your iron levels are based on your symptoms and a blood test.
You certainly know the typical symptoms of iron deficiency, although it is enough if you have two or three of the symptoms. Because even then an iron deficiency can be the cause:
- Chronic fatigue and exhaustion
- paleness
- difficulty concentrating
- hair loss
- Depressive moods
- sleep disorders
- dizziness
- headache
- neck tension
- Brittle nails
- Restless Legs Syndrome
If you don’t feel like going to a doctor’s appointment, you can also carry out an iron blood test yourself at home. To do this, order an iron deficiency test set for about 30 euros, take a little blood from a finger according to the instructions, send it to the respective laboratory and then receive your results by post and/or e-mail after about 5 to 7 working days -Mail sent.
Which values indicate an iron deficiency?
In order to check for iron deficiency, serum ferritin (stored iron) is usually measured. If this value is below 30 µg/l in men and below 15 µg/l in women, this is referred to as a storage iron deficiency.
Sometimes the Hb value is also measured (hemoglobin). It falls when the iron stores are empty and for this reason not enough red blood cells can be formed. If the Hb value falls below the limit value (women 12.0 g/dl, men 13.0 g/dl), iron deficiency anemia requiring therapy is present.
Natural Iron Supplements and Iron-Rich Dietary Supplements – The Difference
The difference between natural iron supplements and iron-rich dietary supplements is that a natural iron supplement contains isolated iron in a particularly well-tolerated form (e.g. chelated iron) or contains isolated iron from a natural source (curry leaf iron). Iron-rich food supplements, on the other hand, are wholesome foods that contain a lot of iron and are commercially available in the form of powders or capsules, e.g. B. barley grass, chlorella, spirulina, hemp protein, and others.
Natural iron supplements – well tolerated, prescription-free and effective
If you have a noticeable iron deficiency or if you have not been able to raise the iron level with diet alone in the past, there are various natural iron-containing preparations and iron-rich dietary supplements to choose from.
Iron-rich dietary supplements
In the following, we will first present the iron-rich dietary supplements, followed by two over-the-counter and well-tolerated natural iron preparations:
Iron from hemp protein and hemp seeds
Of course, hemp protein isn’t just an iron supplement. Rather, it is a holistic dietary supplement that, in addition to around 50 percent protein, also contains other vital substances such as zinc, omega-3 fatty acids, and iron. 7 mg iron and 3.5 mg zinc are contained per 30 grams of the hemp protein – which corresponds to a daily portion.
It is best to take the hemp protein with a little vitamin C-rich juice or mix it in a smoothie. Vitamin C improves the bioavailability of plant-based iron enormously. Vitamin C works so well that a study has already shown how an increased intake of vitamin C can remedy an iron deficiency.
You can also use the peeled hemp seed as an excellent source of iron. Always sprinkle a few hulled hemp seeds over muesli or salads, work the seeds into smoothies, or add them to pastries. Because just 10 grams of hemp seeds provide 4 mg of iron.
Iron from Chlorella
With a daily dose of 5 grams, the microalgae chlorella provides between 2.8 and 6 mg of iron – depending on the brand or batch. At the same time, the chlorella algae naturally supply many other vital substances, just like the hemp protein, e.g. B. B vitamins, chlorophyll, carotenoids, etc.
A Japanese study from 2010, for example, showed that pregnant women who took 6 g of chlorella per day suffered less often from anemia than women who had not taken chlorella.
The microalgae should always be taken with vitamin C, e.g. B. with a powder of the acerola cherry, which is one of the foods richest in vitamin C.
Iron from Spirulina
If you decide to use spirulina as a source of iron, it is important that you pay attention to the iron content, which varies more with spirulina than with many other products. For example, the spirulina tabs of effective nature contain only 0.33 mg iron per 5 g, while the spirulina powder from Germany in raw food quality (also of effective nature) has a tenfold higher iron content, namely 3.25 mg per 5 g. which corresponds to about a quarter of the daily requirement.
Iron from barley grass
Barley grass powder provides 3.7 mg of iron per 10 grams and is a popular ingredient in green smoothies. It can also be mixed into juices and dressings. With these forms of preparation, the necessary vitamin C is also included. Barley grass also provides chlorophyll, carotenoids, calcium, folic acid, and fiber.
Iron from Moringa
The leaves of Moringa, the horseradish tree from India, provide – depending on the manufacturer/producer – 2 to 2.8 mg of iron per 10 grams of moringa powder. Moringa tastes much too hot on its own, so it is best to mix the powder into a smoothie or a fruit shake rich in vitamin C, e.g. B. from banana and orange juice.
Iron from parsley
Parsley is a wonderful source of iron and, conveniently, a very good source of vitamin C as well. You can add the fresh parsley (e.g. 20 g) to your green smoothie and get an extra milligram of iron. The powder of dried parsley (parsley leaf powder) contains around 2.5 mg of iron per 10 grams and can be used in dressings, smoothies, or even in savory pastries.
Natural Iron Supplements
The following two natural iron preparations contain iron in high doses but in a well-tolerated form:
Chelated Iron
If you need/want to resort to the higher dose and therefore isolated iron supplements, chelated iron (iron bound to an amino acid) might be a good idea. Experience has shown that, in contrast to conventional iron tablets, this does not lead to digestive problems and nausea, so it is much more tolerable and is still very well absorbed, in fact at least as well as conventional iron preparations.
For example, in a 2014 Mexican study, 200 schoolchildren, all suffering from iron deficiency (ferritin about 8.8 µg/L), received either ferrous sulfate or chelated iron. In both groups, the iron levels rose similarly well within six months. In the chelate group to 29.6 µg/l, and in the iron sulfate group to 28.9 µg/l.
However, over the long term, the chelated iron appeared to have a more lasting impact on iron levels. Because it was shown that the children who had taken the chelated iron still had higher iron levels (31 µg/l) six months after stopping the iron intake than the children who had taken the conventional iron supplement. The latter already had a falling value of 25.2 µg/l.
We recommend the product iron chelated from effective nature. The purely vegetable capsules contain 14 mg iron in the form of iron bisglycinate and 64 mg natural vitamin C from acerola extract. There are no additives included.
Iron from the curry leaf
Iron preparations from the curry leaf are also highly concentrated and provide pure vegetable iron with very high bioavailability. The capsules also contain vitamin C in the form of natural fruit extracts (amla and acerola extract).
When buying curry leaf iron preparations, make sure that they do not contain any unnecessary additives, such as e.g. e.g. maltodextrin, corn syrup powder, and others. While there are worse things, if there are alternatives without these substances, we would rather use them.
In a test, curry leaf iron was not only better absorbed than a conventional iron preparation (iron(II) gluconate), but it was also much better tolerated. While the subjects from the iron(II) gluconate group suffered from nausea, abdominal pain, and vomiting, the curry leaf subjects felt fine.
We recommend the purely plant-based iron+C capsules from Phytholistic, which contain nothing more than organic curry leaf extract and organic amla extract as a natural source of vitamin C, i.e. no additives whatsoever. Each capsule contains 15 mg of iron and 40 mg of vitamin C.
Natural iron supplements – it is best to combine them
Iron capsules from the curry leaf or the chelated iron are of course already sufficient for the iron supply. However, if you want to use natural iron-rich food supplements, then it is ideal if you combine several of them, e.g. B. hemp protein, hemp seed, and the chlorella algae.
If you also eat a diet rich in iron and also – as described below – avoid factors that inhibit iron absorption and integrate measures that promote iron absorption, nothing can actually go wrong!
On the other hand, it would be insufficient if you believed that you could remedy an iron deficiency simply by taking a little Moringa daily. This is not possible because a daily serving of Moringa simply does not contain enough iron.
