[luv my 2 sweeties]

We are not vegetarians, but for health reasons we eat nearly that way. We eat fish and chicken occasionally, some dairy (mostly cheese) and eggs. I try to stick to whole grains as much as I can and work in lots of fruits and veggies. We drink foritified soy milk (except for my dd who drinks organic cows milk - for now anyway) and use a number of other soy products as well. So that's our nutritional background. Here's the problem:

My ds (16 months) has tested with very low iron levels. We even repeated the test to be sure it wasn't just an anomally. He has constipation issues, which seem to be helped by a combination of a super high fiber diet and chiropractic treatment. But because of his history of trouble in this area, our doctor recommended we forgo suplements. I am inclined to agree. She suggested giving him some red meat once a week. Since we aren't strict veggies, I can go for that (the only trick will be finding some beef that is produced as humanely and environmentally responsibly as possible.)

I guess my question is about why this happened. I thought vegetarians don't usually have to worry about iron? Has anyone else had this problem? He still nurses several times a day (4 - 5). I consider myself to be pretty knowlegable and very careful about nutrition. This development has shaken my confidence a little, I guess. Thanks for listening.

 

[cathe]

I don't think it's true that vegetarians don't have to worry about iron. I was vegan for 10 years and ended up in the hospital getting blood transfusions because I was so anemic - which is not to say that veggies can't get enough iron, just to say that they have to take care to be sure they do and I wasn't be careful to make sure my mineral and portein intake were adequate.

Non-animal sources of iron are not as well assimilated so you sould try to serve them with vitamin C which helps them to be absorbed. Nuts and seeds are great sources of iron - pumpkin, sunflower seeds, almonds - grind them up in a coffee grinder or blender and mix into cereal, rice, yogurt, etc - or better yet over a fruit salad or in a smoothie with vitamin C rich fruit.

Lentils are great source of iron as well as millet - serve with broccoli or greens for vitamin C.

Egg yolks are an excellent source of iron. Get free range, organic eggs or maybe you know someone that has chickens so you'll know they are treated well.

As for beef, if you have a natural foods, you should be able to get organic, range fed beef. Fish would be benificial also.

I know it's discouraging when you feel like you are doing everything right and being careful and then it's still not enough. When I was vegan I thought I was eating so healthy . . .

 

[luv my 2 sweeties]

Thank you Cathe. I think you are right that "don't have to worry" isn't quite true. My ds is a bit picky, so that I think he hasn't been eating enough of the iron rich foods I've been offering. On a day-to-day basis, I just let it go, but over the long run it makes a difference. I hope he goes for the meat. I think he had some stew beef once and liked it, so I'm hopefull. He likes fish and chicken.

Actually, it's funny -- I've been tempted to become totally vegetarian, but both of my kids love meat!

: Especially my 3 year old dd. She jumps up and down and dances when I announce that we are having anything with chicken in it , lol! I guess it's a rare treat for her -- I only make it 2 or 3 times a month. Partly it's a cost issue. I refuse to buy supermarket meat because I know too much about how it is raised and processed. So the chicken I buy from a local farm is pretty pricy (but very yummy!) She usually gets meat at her Grandma's house. I don't make an issue of it there. I read somewhere once that "anything served with love by a grandma is nourishing" (if not always nutritious!) As long as I know she's cooking it well -- my sister and I have both impressed upon her the new increased hazzards of e-coli

-- I'm not going to get militant about it. Well, I'm kind of rambling now. Thanks again!

 

[emmalala]

blackstrap molasses has tons of good stuff in it - but do try to find the organic kind, the regular has concentrated pesticide residues - good luck!

 

[Mama Lori]

There is an herbal iron tonic syrup you can make and give to your toddler. It does not cause constipation, and naturally provides a lot of iron. It is really tasty, too. I gave it to my son when he was anemic at age 2. It is made with yellow dock root, dandelion root, and molasses (and honey, optionally). It is very easy to make, and you can make a batch of it and store a jar of it in the fridge and you give something like 2 TBSP each day. Email me if you want the recipe, and I'll dig it up. [email protected] But it is from the book "Natural Healing for Babies and Children" by Aviva Romm.

Also, kidney beans are high in iron. You can also give a bowl of plain yogurt with organic blackstrap molasses drizzled on top. My son loves this. As far as he's concerned, it's "chocolate syrup". He loves to have it drizzled on top and mix it in himself.

Using iron cookware will help too and this is an age old method of curing anemia.