# High iron meals for toddler?



## boobiepiebaby (May 26, 2008)

Instead of going into the long {horrifying} story of what my ds eats during his day I will just say this, he has HORRIBLE eating habits, is super picky and is a big grouch because of it.
Wic told me his iron levels could be better {he was borderline anemic I believe} and so FRIST I want to improve his iron then work on the rest of his eating habits once we've covered that base.
What are some meals that are high in iron and child friendly? Do you have any recipes that you are willing to share? A helpful website you could point me to? Advice?







:
I know what foods have iron but I want to have meals that are rich in iron so I would love any tips you have.


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## Norasmomma (Feb 26, 2008)

Do you have a cast iron pan? That helps immensely. My Dd eats everything so we have no problems with her iron levels, plus I cook pretty much all our food in cast iron.

It's weird that WIC didn't give you any info on how to get his iron levels up. My WIC is always trying to shove pamphlets and info down my throat.


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## PiePie (Oct 2, 2006)

Bump


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## mamadelbosque (Feb 6, 2007)

I don't know what your DS eats, but if he eats *ANYTHING* thats cooked.. get a good cast iron pan - I love my Lodge stuff! Every meal I make has *something* thats cooked in my cast iron, or just about, so I don't worry about our iron levels... grilled cheese, eggs, tomato sauce, chili, gravy,fry'd fish or french fries or chicken, just about anything that you'd use a fry pan for, basicly anything you don't boil water for, you can cook in your cast iron with great success.


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## abemom2 (Jul 7, 2008)

Is enameled cast iron good enough?


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## guestmama9904 (Jul 6, 2002)

disclaimer: i am not saying this to make you feel guilty at all, i just want to point out that while kids certainly can be picky about food, if we as parents offer only or mostly healthy food choices they will still have decent eating habits, even if they choose to only eat one or two of the healthy foods that is offered.

as for iron-rich foods egg yolk is great. try scrambeling eggs with a bit of cream cheese in them or a bit of chopped up bacon, most kids love the saltiness of this meal. natural molases is very high in iron. you could make some healthy gingerbread cookies with whole wheat flour and eggs and molases as sweetener. greens are high in iron too, try making a green smoothie with kale, strawberries, a banana and some liquid like milk, yogurt, keffir, or juice. also be careful with what you child is drinking. kids easily fill up on juice and even milk and then do not eat as much, therefore reducing the amount of iron rich foods they may be taking in.

most meat is high in iron. make tiny meat balls with spaghetti sauce to dip in, toddlers love dipping things! a food that is very high in iron that is somewhat out of fashion is liver. my husband and kids love liverworst. there are some brands that are natural and taste good! DH speads Nueske's liverworst pate on crackers, tops it with a slice of pickle and voila! its easy and an inexpensive snack. also finely chopped chicken liver can be added to whatever meat you are cooking without anyone being the wiser.

below is a site you might find helpful-

http://www.askdrsears.com/html/4/T043100.asp


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## mamadelbosque (Feb 6, 2007)

enameld cast iron isn't going to add cast iron to your diet - thats the point of the enamel, it keeps the iron from leaching out of the skillet. So, not really. You want a plan old fashioned cast iron skillet.


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## Norasmomma (Feb 26, 2008)

The enameled cast iron won't help, it has to be regular old cast iron. We have great iron levels because of this, my DD just got her iron taken at WIC and it was great. As the pp said cooking anything in cast iron will make a difference.

You could use Sucanat in your baking it has high iron levels, also non meat sources include lentils, molasses, tofu, and chickpeas.

Meat is a great source of iron. Also remember you need some kind of vitamin c to help the body absorb iron. HTH.

Here's a link also: http://www.fatfreekitchen.com/nutrition/iron.html


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## veganf (Dec 12, 2005)

High iron meals my guys like:
- chili
- kale sunflower burgers
- bean salad
- ma po tofu with asian greens & green beans
- bean burritos
- 7 layer bean dip
- bean tacos
- soups: lentil soup, bean & barley soup, split pea soup

You could also get some Floradix liquid iron supplement and mix it in with little juice, very palatable.
Cook in cast iron when possible.
And use blackstrap molasses mixed in oatmeal, cookies, muffins, etc.


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## umsami (Dec 1, 2003)

I went through that with DS1 and DS2. We went and got a cast iron pan, which helped immensely. Usually one or two meals were cooked in that. The ped told us to use Polyvisol which neither one would touch... so we found those great jelly bean vitamins that have iron in them.







: Kids happily ate them. Iron levels are fine.


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## abemom2 (Jul 7, 2008)

I thought plain cast iron isn't the healthiest option, because it leeches iron and more into the food. Now I see people actually want it? I thought it isn't the best iron around?

There's so much opposing info around. I was about to get enameled to replace some pots, now I'm not sure what to get.

Would the Lodge unseasoned be enough iron? My DS1 needs iron, and supplements don't add much to him, and constipate him. He hasen't taken them in a really long time.
Ana


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## KristyDi (Jun 5, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *abemom2* 
I thought plain cast iron isn't the healthiest option, because it leeches iron and more into the food. Now I see people actually want it? I thought it isn't the best iron around?

There's so much opposing info around. I was about to get enameled to replace some pots, now I'm not sure what to get.

*Would the Lodge unseasoned be enough iron?* My DS1 needs iron, and supplements don't add much to him, and constipate him. He hasen't taken them in a really long time.
Ana

If you get the unseasoned you still have to season it at home. I don't think there's a difference in terms of the amount of iron you get from the pre-seasoned and the unseasoned. But I could be wrong.


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## veganf (Dec 12, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *abemom2* 
My DS1 needs iron, and supplements don't add much to him, and constipate him.

Have you tried Floradix/Floravital? I've never heard of anyone becoming constipated using that form of iron.


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## sbgrace (Sep 22, 2004)

Good food sources: red meat, meat in general (darker), liver if you're comfortable with that and have a healthy source, blackstrap molasses, I know at least some sea veggies are but I've not looked into their oxalic or other/like calcium content. Sweet potato has iron.

There are some high iron foods mentioned on this thread that you actually want to avoid because they also contain things that block iron. I'm mentioning those first because you'll run across them but they are, based on my research of scientific studies, actually what you want to avoid.
So sources of iron that are not good choices because they actually block iron absorption: red grapes (incluiding raisins), egg (white and yolk), spinach and other high oxalate vegetables; not all greens are high oxalic so some are sources you can use), beans/legumes, nuts, and seeds. You also want to watch diary and soy (a bean) when you are at the same time trying to feed iron rich foods. So certain greens might be ok but if you add dairy or other high calcium foods you're blocking the iron. Kale was mentioned it's low oxolate it's high calcium so while of the greens I would pick Kale and Mustard I'm not sure how it works out in terms of actual absorption because both are also high calcium.

The vitamin C can help with certain things (phytates in grains that block iron for example) so you want vitamin C with iron sources. One of the best food sources of vitamin C are actually peppers--yellow, red, green sweet peppers I believe in that order. The thing I'm not sure about is that I think they would also contain antioxidants which are what block iron in the red grapes/raisins. So I would stick with green peppers as a vitamin C source and see if they contain anything that blocks iron. Personally, I did sodium ascorbate.

You also see a lot of cook in cast iron on this thread. Cast iron is inorganic iron. So in my mind if you're going to try to supplement using cast iron you would be better off using a more absorbable form, preferably one that doesn't oxidize or build up. I like ferrous bis-glycinate. In other words, the pan is a supplement too. It's just not in a pill.

I've posted before with links to studies showing the foods I've mentioned block iron. I'll try to find the post. Most, though, are easy to find information on. Egg yolk especially is harder to find the information and it's often recommended for iron. It's not a good source.
Here's one link I made with the studies on iron absorption from various sources: http://www.mothering.com/discussions...d.php?t=893110


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## Rainbow2911 (Dec 16, 2004)

My kids all love floradix. They happily drink it down neat. Probably because it has orange juice in it and that is a rare treat for them.









I make nuggets for my kids by breading and frying organic chicken livers. Seem to be very acceptable to them with ketchup. Mini burgers and meat balls are great as a pp suggested - you could perhaps sneak a bit of liver in there too if he will eat them.
I make a mild pate with onions, mushrooms, chicken livers and eggs that my kids like spread on crackers but they do like livery tastes.

Hope you find some good options.


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## Norasmomma (Feb 26, 2008)

IDK I just know that our iron levels are good and we cook in cast iron-I always remember it being recommended to increase iron







.

I also recommended to use vitamin c to help with iron absorption.


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## sbgrace (Sep 22, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Norasmomma* 
IDK I just know that our iron levels are good and we cook in cast iron-I always remember it being recommended to increase iron







.

I also recommended to use vitamin c to help with iron absorption.

Definitely use the C!
Yes, it does increase iron content in foods signicantly and so it's no surprise it would increase iron levels in the body. My reasoning, though, is that chelated forms of iron are better absorbed. And the "risk" of iron supplementation is the unabsorbed iron in the body causing things such as oxidative stress. So I want to use the best absorbed form so there is less "extra" around. I was saying that iron from a pan is also a supplemental iron. So I if I were picking I'd pick one that was absorbed better and use smaller amounts. But I didn't mean to imply that cast iron won't raise the iron content in foods and in the body. It will. So that is an option for sure. It just sometimes seems like people think it's more natural than iron in pills or liquids. It isn't. But it will work and is an option for the OP or others. The other concern I have about cast iron is it increases food levels signicantly. And men don't need any supplemental iron. In fact, if they get it, they are at risk of iron overload and the associated problems. So since cast iron is used for the whole family it makes me a bit uncomfortable.


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## tree-hugger (Jul 18, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *sbgrace* 
Good food sources: red meat, meat in general (darker), liver if you're comfortable with that and have a healthy source, blackstrap molasses, I know at least some sea veggies are but I've not looked into their oxalic or other/like calcium content. Sweet potato has iron.

There are some high iron foods mentioned on this thread that you actually want to avoid because they also contain things that block iron. I'm mentioning those first because you'll run across them but they are, based on my research of scientific studies, actually what you want to avoid.
So sources of iron that are not good choices because they actually block iron absorption: red grapes (incluiding raisins), egg (white and yolk), spinach and other high oxalate vegetables; not all greens are high oxalic so some are sources you can use), beans/legumes, nuts, and seeds. You also want to watch diary and soy (a bean) when you are at the same time trying to feed iron rich foods. So certain greens might be ok but if you add dairy or other high calcium foods you're blocking the iron. Kale was mentioned it's low oxolate it's high calcium so while of the greens I would pick Kale and Mustard I'm not sure how it works out in terms of actual absorption because both are also high calcium.

The vitamin C can help with certain things (phytates in grains that block iron for example) so you want vitamin C with iron sources. One of the best food sources of vitamin C are actually peppers--yellow, red, green sweet peppers I believe in that order. The thing I'm not sure about is that I think they would also contain antioxidants which are what block iron in the red grapes/raisins. So I would stick with green peppers as a vitamin C source and see if they contain anything that blocks iron. Personally, I did sodium ascorbate.

You also see a lot of cook in cast iron on this thread. Cast iron is inorganic iron..and not a very absorbable form at that. So in my mind if you're going to try to supplement using cast iron you would be better off using a more absorbable form, preferably one that doesn't oxidize or build up. I like ferrous bis-glycinate. In other words, the pan is a supplement too. It's just not in a pill. And it's not well absorbed.

I've posted before with links to studies showing the foods I've mentioned block iron. I'll try to find the post. Most, though, are easy to find information on. Egg yolk especially is harder to find the information and it's often recommended for iron. It's not a good source.
Here's one link I made with the studies on iron absorption from various sources: http://www.mothering.com/discussions...d.php?t=893110









:

This is all very good information. Iron is indeed a complicated topic.

Also,another excellent source of iron is bone marrow. Bone marrow contains at least as much iron as liver and it is highly absorbable.

Cook a whole chicken and break open the bones to get the marrow out. Or boil some beef soup bones and pick the soft marrow out of the bones.

It is quite tasty plain or spread on bread or crackers. If you are buying and cooking a whole chicken anyway it won't cost you any extra. It is being marketed as the "new"delicacy at high end restaurants.

It is probably very natural for us to eat it. Prehistoric people certainly did. Perhaps anemia is common in babies now because they are not being fed bone marrow and organ meats like they probably were thousands of years ago.


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## veganf (Dec 12, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *tree-hugger* 
It is probably very natural for us to eat it. Prehistoric people certainly did. Perhaps anemia is common in babies now because they are not being fed bone marrow and organ meats like they probably were thousands of years ago.

Um, they were being breastfed instead of today's largely cowmilk formula fed babies.


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## tree-hugger (Jul 18, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *veganf* 
Um, they were being breastfed instead of today's largely cowmilk formula fed babies.

anemia is very common today among breast-fed babies

some studies even indicate that breast fed babies are more often anemic than ff babies

: J Nutr. 2008 Aug;138(8):1499-504. Links
Predominant breast-feeding from birth to six months is associated with fewer gastrointestinal infections and increased risk for iron deficiency among infants.Monterrosa EC, Frongillo EA, Vásquez-Garibay EM, Romero-Velarde E, Casey LM, Willows ND.
Department of Agricultural, Food, and Nutritional Sciences, University of Alberta, T6G 2P5 Edmonton, Canada.

Iron deficiency (ID) is prevalent among infants world-wide and may be more likely among infants born to women living in disadvantaged environments. A strategy to address ID in this context is to feed iron-fortified formula, but this may create risk for gastrointestinal (GI) infection. Our objective was to investigate the relationship between infant feeding practices, iron status, and likelihood of a GI infection in the first 6 mo of life. We conducted a prospective study at a public hospital in Guadalajara, Mexico. Healthy women who gave birth to a healthy term infant were eligible to participate. Each month, mothers (n = 154) provided information on infant feeding methods and symptoms of GI infection. At 6 mo of age, infants' iron status was assessed [hemoglobin (Hb) and serum ferritin concentration]. When compared with nonpredominantly breast-fed [partially breast-feeding (PBF) and formula feeding (FF) combined], predominantly breast-fed (PRBF) infants to 6 mo had a lower incidence of GI infection from 0-6 mo [18 vs. 33%; P = 0.04; adjusted odds ratio (OR) = 0.4; 95% CI = 0.2, 1.0] but a higher risk for ID (serum ferritin < 12 microg/L) at 6 mo (22 vs. 4%; P = 0.001; adjusted OR = 9.2; 95% CI = 2.3, 37.0). Anemia (Hb < 110 g/L) prevalence did not differ among feeding groups (13% for PRBF, 19% for PBF, and 4% for FF; P = 0.09). In this low-income population, our results suggest that PRBF should be promoted and the risk for ID managed using public health and nutrition strategies.


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