Awareness Update - Diet For Thalassaemia Pt. 2

FOODS WHICH DECREASE NON-MEAT IRON ABSORPTION

1. Cereals, wheat bran, maize, oats, rice and soy, decrease the iron absorbed into our body and fight the effect of vitamin C. Foods rich in vitamin C increase iron absorption. It is good to eat a lot of cereals in your diet, but remember not to take a vitamin C-rich food with them, like orange juice.

Try to combine milk and cereals (e.g., cheese sandwich, French toast, macaroni cheese, cereals and milk). In the UK, all wheat flour other than wholemeal is required by law to be fortified with iron. The fortification of break fast cereals is voluntary.

It may therefore be better to choose unfortified wholemeal wheat flour and bread, and to look care fully at the label of your favourite break fast cereal. Unfortified breakfast cereals include porridge oats and some cereals in health shops but look at the label to make sure you choose an unfortified variety.

In other countries, flour and breakfast cereals may not be fortified. Is this a good excuse for more holidays abroad then? Soy protein also decreases the amount of iron absorbed into your body. Soy protein can work wellin many recipes (e.g., spaghetti Bolognaise, stews and casseroles) and the taste can be improved by adding spices.

2. Tea, coffee and some spices (e.g., oregano) decrease iron absorption. Drink plenty of tea and coffee daily, particularly with your meals. Better yet, if you take it with milk. Tea is also a very good source of antioxidants as will be discussed later. And, keep adding oregano to spice-up your souvlaki!

3. Dairy products- Milk, cheese and yoghurt decrease the iron absorbed into our body. Calcium is also important for osteoporosis, so it is good to include as many dairy products as you can in your diet. Lower fat varieties of milk (skimmed or semi-skimmed) and cheese are just as high in calcium and may be preferred if you are watching your weight. At least one pint of milk should be taken every day.

FOODS WHICH INCREASE NON-MEAT IRON ABSORPTION

1. Vitamin C is present in fruit, fruit juice and vegetables. It is better to avoid drinking fruit juice, such as orange juice, with your meal or your toast in the morning. Instead, cups of tea or coffee are better options as they inhibit iron absorption.

Alternatively, have a glass of milk! Beer increases iron absorption so it is better to avoid drinking it with your meal too often, but you could always have it on its own with some nuts! Fruit and fruit juice are, however, good sources of antioxidants and should be taken on their own as snacks. Boiled vegetables contain much less vitamin C because the vitamin leaks in the water.

2. Meat, poultry, fish and seafood not only contain a lot of meat iron but they also help to absorb more of the non-meat iron from your food! It would be unwise, how ever, to omit them from the diet altogether as they contain other vital nutrients, particularly important for children and adolescents.

3. Pickles, sauerkraut, soy sauce, vinegar, alcohol, pickled onions, tunips and carrots as well as fermented soy products (e.g., miso and soy sauce) enhance iron absorption. The amount of iron absorbed is even higher when the pickled vegetables are added to bread and rye-containing meals.

In general, a low iron diet would contain cereals (maize, whole-grain flour, beans) and root vegetables with little meat, fish or foods rich in vitamin C. A moderate iron diet would consist of cereals and root vegetables, but would also contain some vitamin C-rich foods and meat. High iron diets contain generous quantities of meat, poultry and fish.
They also contain foods with high levels of vitamin C such as citrus fruits and some vegetables. A high iron diet can be reduced to a moderate one by the regular consumption of foods which decrease the amount of iron absorbed by our body, such as dairy products, cereals, beans, coffee and tea. "Right", says Fred, lets have a cup of tea!!.

By Dr. Dona Hileti-Telfer