Caution: even well-intentioned and supposedly „healthy diets“ can lead to iron deficiency.
Above all, a healthy diet should ensure that the body is ideally supplied with nutrients and that people feel fitter and healthier. However, ‚healthy‘ does not always mean actually healthy. Many supposedly healthy diets, which aim to provide the best possible supply of nutrients, lead to one of the most important nutrients being neglected: iron. This book explains this ‚iron trap‘ in a generally understandable way. It contains important information on foods with very little iron and summarises these in an iron-negative list. There are a few surprises. The first rule of thumb for avoiding iron deficiency is therefore: Avoid eating only foods from the iron-negative list!
If you suspect you have an iron deficiency or are ill, these tips are of course no substitute for a visit to your trusted doctor and no treatment recommendations are made here. However, the suggestions presented here show simple ways in which you can significantly improve your iron status through a targeted and clever selection of natural foods, true to the motto: iron in the blood, all good.
Fruit, vegetables, salad and often also fish contain many valuable ingredients but unfortunately often far less than 0.5 mg iron/100 g edible portion. A hidden hunger for iron can be the result if you mainly eat foods that contain very little iron.
In his textbook „Diet for Iron Deficiency“, published in 2023, food scientist Prof. Dr. Klaus Günther provides scientifically sound tips on a healthy diet that prevents acute iron deficiency.