So in lieu of an actual meal, I decided to do some research on foods that are good sources of iron. However, you should note that if your baby is still breastfeeding, breastfeeding is a really good source of iron.
Jax just had his one year check up and was a little low in iron (just barely – .1% lower than “normal). We are starting to phase out breastfeeding, so I’m not sure if that is the cause. Typically people think iron comes mainly from meat, which is what my pediatrician suggested I add more of to his diet. Meat is also a great source of protein, which is doubly important for your babies developing mind and body.
Jax isn’t really into meat (we try to include a meat option at every meal, but getting him to eat it is another issue altogether). Yes, I’ve got a somewhat vegetarian child. I wonder if this has to do with my mostly vegetarian diet when I was pregnant? Well here are some websites with lists of high iron foods and explanations of the benefits of iron:
http://wholesomebabyfood.momtastic.com/Iron.htm (also has a list of how much iron your child should be getting and at what age – I love these types of list. They aren’t always easy to find.)
http://kellymom.com/nutrition/vitamins/iron/)
http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/dietary-sources-of-iron-for-vegetarians.html
http://www.vrg.org/nutrition/iron.htm
I didn’t want to copy and paste a huge long list, sorry . . . it just seemed redundant. The important thing to note is there are two types of iron – heme (protein/meat foods) and non-heme (plant foods). Adding foods with Vitamin C into the meal with iron rich foods will aid the absorbtion of iron, especially with non-heme (plant) foods. Non- heme foods are where we get most of our iron, but it doesn’t absorb as easily as heme foods do. Here are some sources of Vitamin C rich foods:
- Citrus
- Berries
- Green Veggies (broccoli & cabbage)
- Peaches
- Apples
- Bananas
- Tomatoes
The non-heme foods that I’ve been trying to incorporate into his diet are:
- Spinach- freshly steamed and added to a smoothie that has a berry or peaches (Vitamin C rich food), we usually have a smoothie at snack time or as part of one of his meals
- Beans- he likes black and pinto especially.
- Oatmeal – about every other day for breakfast
- Quinoa
I normally include a heme type food, but like I said, he usually won’t eat those. I include it so that at least he tries it, since they are good sources of iron that aren’t as hard to absorb as non-heme.
Take a look at the list provided in the links. For me, I was able to realize, yeah I am providing lots of foods with iron, but here are some other ones that are higher in iron that I could include more often so that I can increase his iron.
Just wanted to share this with you if your little one has the same issue! Or keep doing what your doing if they don’t!
Hope you had a great Monday!
Ash
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Filed under: Baby, Children, Family, Food, Monday Meals, Parenting tips, Uncategorized | Tagged: baby, children, food, monday meals, Quinoa, iron, spinach, vitamin c, protien, iron rich foods, iron rich foods for baby | 2 Comments »
