Did you know that Iron Deficiency and Calcium Deficiency is particularly common in women?
This is because women have additional nutritional needs compared to men. Their needs change depending on whether they are menstruating, pregnant, breastfeeding or at menopause.
Women need more than twice the amount of iron than men (18mg vs. 8mg) and 1000mg of calcium a day!
Low intakes of important nutrients like dietary iron and calcium can lead to side effects:
- Fatigue
- Hair loss
- Pale complexion
- Shortness of breath
- Irritability
- Muscle cramps and aches
If nothing is done, this problem could result in more severe health complications (eg. iron deficiency anemia or osteoporosis).
Main Causes:
Iron
Low Iron stores in women could be caused by:
- Inadequate iron intake from poor diets/restrictive diets
- Blood loss from heavy menstruation
- Pregnancy
Iron plays an extremely important part in helping bring oxygen to our organs and even in maintaining your immunity, so making sure you have enough of it can be crucial for your overall health!
Calcium
Decline of estrogen hormones during menopause will cause a woman’s bones to thin faster – Calcium intake needs to increase to help counter this problem and maintain bone stregth.
The Solution
To replenish our iron and calcium stores, We just need to INCREASE intake of foods that contain these nutrients!
Below is a list of ingredients that are rich in Iron and Calcium:
Heme Iron Sources (Animal sources):
- Beef
- Chicken
- Sardines
- Liver (chicken, lamb)
- Chicken egg
Non-Heme Iron Sources (Plant sources):
- Firm tofu
- Tempeh
- Nuts (cashews & almonds)
- Spinach
- Kale
- Broccoli
NOTE: Make sure to eat iron plant-sources with foods that have vitamin C to increase absorption! (eg. citrus fruits, tomatoes, capsicum, broccoli, kale)
Calcium Sources:
- Dairy (milk, cheese, yoghurt)
- Broccoli
- Chinese cabbage
- Kale
- Fortified plant-based milks
Download the YoRipe app and discover the wide range of iron and calcium rich recipes that we have!
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