How to Improve Iron Absorption from Plant Foods

Iron from plant foods is absorbed less readily than iron from meat, and the proportion you absorb varies a great deal from meal to meal. That variation is the useful part: it is something you can influence with what else is on the plate.

Start with the meal, not the day

The influences on non-heme iron absorption act inside a single meal. A vitamin C food eaten with your lentils changes what happens to that meal’s iron; the same orange eaten four hours later does not. So the practical unit is the meal.

What increases absorption

Ascorbic acid is the best-documented enhancer. It reduces iron to the form the intestine can take up and keeps it soluble. Citrus, peppers, tomatoes and broccoli all supply enough to be worth including. Other organic acids from fermented foods act in the same direction.

What decreases it

Phytate in pulses, whole grains and seeds binds iron, as do polyphenols in tea, coffee and cocoa. Neither is a reason to avoid those foods, which carry plenty else worth having. Soaking and sprouting reduce phytate, and moving tea and coffee away from meals removes most of their effect.

Keep it in proportion

These are meaningful effects, but they are not unlimited, and the body regulates absorption according to its own stores. If you have reason to think your iron status is low, that is a question for blood tests and a clinician, not for meal planning alone.

Subjects covered in this chapter

• All interactions involving absorbtion
• All interactions involving iron