Iron Deficiency Anaemia

First of all, know the signs. You may have one or more of the following and if they are an ongoing issue, get a check up with your GP:

Feeling tired	Depressed
Breathless	Hair falling out
Pale skin	Muscle cramps
Irregular heart beat or chest pain	Headaches
Cold hands and feet	Loss of appetite
Dizzy	Sore tongue
Tinnitus	Strange cravings
Feeling itchy	Brittle nails

Poor diet, heavy periods, breastfeeding, pregnancy and a vigorous exercise regime may all contribute to iron deficiency anaemia, as will certain conditions and diseases such as celiac disease, inflammatory bowel disease and cancer.

Vitamin C and A improve absorption of non-heme iron. By that I mean, if you are eating a plant-based diet, make sure you are also eating plenty of brightly coloured vegetables, for example red, orange and green. A bell pepper has more vitamin C than an orange and sweet potato, spinach and carrots are high in βeta-carotene (provitamin A). Carotenoids are inefficiently converted by the body, into retinol (vitamin A), sometimes as little as 24:1, which could be why liver was traditionally prescribed for anaemia. Not only is liver high in iron but is also the best dietary source of retinol.

The Reference Nutrient Intake (RNI) for Vitamin C, for most adults, is 40mg/d. And it is claimed that this may be obtained from diet alone. However, heat and prolonged storage destroys it: how long has that pepper been knocking around in the fridge? How long after picking, did it land on your plate? Do you boil vegetables in lots of water? There is also an ongoing argument about whether soil depletion reduces vitamin levels. With all these factors in mind, you may wish to consider a vitamin C supplement.