My Top 5 vegan sources of Iron

Hi Everyone,

Its MOnndaaaaay Again! so that means a Top 5 List :D… Like I have mentioned many times before when you go Vegan you start to pay a lot more attention to what you are putting into your body, and you also start getting a lot of questions about WHY you are vegan and WHAT do you eat… and so many concerns about your health and well being… where do you get protein? Calcium or IRON!

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well… l already did a Blog on Protein a few weeks ago HERE, but lets talk about IRON for a little bit.. since there a huge misconception that the only and Best source of Iron is Red meat…

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SO here is the mind blowing Truth….

Although IRON is VERY Important for Energy Production, Health and Immunity… Too much Iron in our Body can be very harmful as well! too much IRON  makes it difficult for our Body to get rid of the excess and it has been linked to Heart disease, arthritis & liver and pancreas degeneration! 

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As far as what Iron is and what it is doing… believe it or not RED meat or other meat sources are NOT the best Source of Iron for your body… There are Basically two different types of iron available in foods: ‘hem-iron’ and ‘non hem-iron’

Hem-iron Comes from animals… it has already been absorbed by the animals and we are getting it second hand…our bodies Absorb Hemp-Iron very fast because its already been processed…

Non hem-iron comes from Vegetables, greens, Legumes… and our body has to work to extract Iron from these foods and they
are not as easily absorbed by our bodies! but that is not a bad thing!

BECAUSE the Iron from Animals has already been processed our body cannot monitor the amount of IRON intake and we can consume too much Iron… with Veggies, because our bodies have to extract it they filter and control the amount needed...therefore our body is protected from consuming too much IRON!!! 

b28a3a52ee99399a5389e758f7de87b6 there you have it… now here are my Top 5 non hem-Iron Picks 🙂 

1. Dark Leafy Greens

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Believe it or not… Greens actually contain more iron when cooked than when eaten raw!!!

cooked SPINACH has 6.43 mg of iron per 1 cup (180g) when cooked. 

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2. Whole Grains

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Whole grains are another great source of iron . to name just a few… quinoa, oatmeal, barley, rice, bulgur, buckwheat and millet.

Quinoa, for example, contains 2.76 mg of iron for a 1 cup serving.

 3. Nuts

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Another GREAT source of Iron,

our of all Nuts Cashews contain the most IRON at 8.22 mg of iron in 1 cup. Almonds also have 5.32 mg/cup Macadamias and pistachios are a close third and fourth. They both contain almost 5 mg per cup, respectively.

4. Legumes

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Beans, beans the musical Fruit… the more you eat the more….you get Iron!!!

kidney beans : One cup provides3.93 mg  of iron.

5. Dark Chocolate and Cocoa Powder

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WHATTTTTTttttt??? well this one is a TREAT!!! haha…

yes its true…Dark chocolate (70-85% cacao solids) contains more iron, ounce for ounce, than beef – a lot more! A 3 oz. portion of cooked ground beef (70% lean meat, 30% fat) contains 2.11mg  of iron, while 3 oz. of dark chocolate boasts 10.12mg …. so please leave the cows alone 🙂 have chocolate instead 😀

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So there you have it… if someone asks you where you get your IRON from.. you can not only educate them about these Iron Rich..wonderful green and legumes but also let them know that it is the BEST source of Iron over meat for a healthy well functioning body…
Hope you guys found this useful! I’ll be back with more TOP 5 lists next Monday.. but please check back daily for vegan and cruelty free goodness ;D
as always YOU’RE WELCOME!
love & Peace
Vegan Needs…

20 thoughts

    1. thank you 🙂 yes unfortunately so many people are just stuck with the idea that meat is the only source of so many nutrients that otherwise cannot be found… its just not true :/ thanks for reading 😀

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  1. Well done. In macrobiotics, they make a tasty super iron-rich condiment cooking the carrot top greens and/or parsley in a pan, preferably an iron skillet, in a tiny bit of sesame oil. Once really cooked down, stir some miso paste in, like a rich red or barley miso. Add to grains, on bread, with lentils or whatever. It’s good to eat a little daily if someone is actually low in iron. Blackstrap molasses is another easy way to boost iron content. But grains, greens and beans are the way to go! ~Tracy

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      1. oh a bunch of things really… I never liked consuming animal products really, it always made me feel sad.. but I thought that I had to because I needed the protein or it was a natural thing humans need to survive… but that is just not true… and of course being on a diet and then gaining and losing weight and finally realizing that I can eat as much as I want of the right foods and everything will fall into place 🙂 what made it click for me was seeing a video on Peta’s site of a chinese leather factory.. but they were using Dog skin for leather and I will never forget the howling in that video and other things … right then I made a connection to other animals and why I felt so much for the dog but not the others! and it made me feel stupid, insensitive and terrible and I realized that all animals feel pain and I don’t want to contribute to any of it… ever! sorry that was a long answer 🙂 but thats what happened, the health benefits and slimmer body and all came as a bonus really 🙂 hope that answered your question, thanks so much for reading 😀

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      2. Oh.. The video sounds horrible! Reminds me of one I saw about Korean food markets.. The dog was the food.. The reporter rescued him and called him Lucky..

        Yes, all animals do feel pain. Just that we justify animals feeling pain to provide meat, or leather.. That’s a good point.

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      3. Haha, I feel like no matter what I write it won’t really grasp how I felt if that makes any sense, but the howling of those dogs just got to me… Thanks for asking me, I feel like I should do a post in this 🐶

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