Iron What Is Iron? Iron is an essential mineral required to help make red blood cells, their main role is to carry oxygen around the body and into the muscles. Iron is also assists in the body by helping maintain a healthy immune system.
Why Do We Need Iron? Iron helps absorb and transfer oxygen to the muscles all around the body, a lack of iron can impair aerobic metabolism by decreasing the delivery of oxygen to the muscles. This can lead to a decrease in aerobic fitness and overall performance. Athletes who take part in aerobic sports such as swimmers will require more iron in their diet than the recommended daily allowance to maintain optimum levels. The reason iron must be consumed regularly in the diet is because the body is unable to make iron and training causes a loss of red blood cells. Women have a higher daily requirement of iron and in particular female athletes will require more iron than male athletes.
Symptoms of Low Iron Levels (Anaemia) Athletes with low iron levels can suffer from symptoms including:
Fatigue. Paleness. Chronic infections/colds. Poor academic performance. Low body temperature.
If you are concerned you may be anaemic (low iron). A quick and easy guide of your iron levels is to inspect the underneath of your eyelids, if they are a reddish pink colour, your iron levels are likely to be at a normal level, however if they look a little pale / white you may require more iron in your diet (see examples below). If you suspect you are iron deficient or would like a more accurate test visit your local GP for an iron test.
Where Do We Get Iron From? Iron can be found in two forms; haem and non-haem iron. Absorption is greater from haem sources of iron where as non-haem iron absorption is less effective. To enhance the absorption of non-haem sources of iron consume vitamin C during or immediately before your meal. Examples of vitamin C sources include a glass of orange juice or a kiwi.
Examples of Iron
Haem sources Lean steak Beef Lamb Fish Poultry Offal (Liver, Kidney, etc.)
Non-haem sources Eggs Dark leafy vegetables (kale, spinach) Nuts Raisins
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