
How to get your daily iron
Me pēhea e kai i tō rino o ia rā
Getting enough iron is essential for good health and wellbeing. Iron helps to carry oxygen in your blood from your lungs to your brain and muscles. This helps to keep you physically and mentally strong. Because your body uses iron every day, you need to keep up your daily intake to avoid getting low in iron.
If you do not get enough iron, you will feel tired, faint and breathless, and you might find it hard to concentrate. Your skin might also be pale.
Some people have a higher risk of low iron levels. These include:
- babies, children and teenagers, because they are growing rapidly
- girls and women who have heavy periods
- pregnant women, who are building their baby's iron stores
- athletes
- vegans and vegetarians
- people on restrictive or fad diets.
If you think you are low in iron, talk to your general practice team as the only way to diagnose iron deficiency is through a blood test.
You cannot treat iron deficiency by diet alone, so if you are low in iron your doctor may prescribe an iron supplement. But even if you are prescribed a supplement, it is still important to get enough iron in your diet. Your doctor will also treat whatever is causing your iron deficiency.
Foods containing iron
Many foods have small amounts of iron. We absorb the iron in animal foods such as meat and fish more easily than the iron in plant foods, such as grains, nuts, seeds, vegetables and fruit.
Excellent sources of iron
- Lean beef
- Lean lamb
- Kidney
- Venison
- Liver (but limit this to 100 g once a week if you are pregnant)
- Shellfish, such as paua and mussels.
The redder the meat the higher the iron content.
Good sources of iron
- Fish – especially oily fish such as sardines, tuna, salmon, mackerel
- Lean chicken – the leg meat contains more iron than the breast meat
- Lean pork/
Useful sources of iron

- Eggs
- Wholemeal bread and fruit bread
- Iron-fortified breakfast cereals – choose a cereal with at least 3 mg iron per serving
- Dried fruit, such as apricots, raisins and figs
- Green leafy vegetables, such as silverbeet, spinach and watercress
- Nuts and seeds, such as pumpkin, sesame and sunflower
- Legumes, such as kidney beans, chickpeas, lentils, split peas and baked beans
- Tofu and tempeh (fermented soybeans)
- Spreads such as Marmite, peanut butter, hummus and tahini (sesame seed paste).
Tips to improve your iron intake
Choose a variety of foods
This is the best way to get enough iron. Every day have food from all the main food groups:
- grain foods – choose mostly wholegrain and those naturally high in fibre
- vegetables and fruit
- milk and milk products
- lean meat, chicken, seafood, eggs, legumes, nuts and seeds.
Eat lean red meat regularly
- Have a serving of lean red meat at least three times a week. A serving is the size and thickness of the palm of your hand.
- Eat meat, chicken or fish and vegetables together. Meat, chicken and fish help your body absorb the iron in vegetables.
Get plenty of vitamin C
Vitamin C helps us absorb up to four times as much iron. You can get vitamin C from many fruits (berries, feijoas, kiwifruit, mandarin, orange, rock melon and tamarillo). And vegetables (broccoli, capsicum, cauliflower and tomato).
Try to include fruit or vegetables with every meal, especially if you are vegetarian or vegan.
Eat a variety of plant foods if you are vegetarian or vegan
Have plenty of green leafy vegetables and wholegrains. Regularly include legumes, tofu, tempeh, nuts and seeds.
Keep your meals tannin-free
The tannin in tea and coffee stops your body from absorbing as much iron. Drink tea and coffee between meals rather than with meals.
On the next page: Iron-rich meal ideas
Written by HealthInfo clinical advisers. Last reviewed November 2023.
Sources
The information in this section comes from the following sources, some of which may be clinically complex or not available to the general public
Aspen Pharmacare – Ferinject patient information. Retrieved April 2017.
Canterbury Community Health Pathways – IV iron infusion. Retrieved April 2017.
DermNet NZ – Iron deficiency.
Ministry of Health – Nutrient reference values for Australia and New Zealand. 2006.
National Institutes of Health, Office of Dietary Supplements – Iron, dietary supplement factsheet. April 2014.
Patient.info – Iron deficiency anaemia.
Image and embedded video sources
Bread image from Grant Cochrane at FreeDigitalPhotos.net. August 2014.
Citrus fruit image from xura Images at FreeDigitalPhotos.net. August 2014.
Fruit bowl image from Shutterstock (image ID 264191042). September 2017.
Image of a man having an intravenous infusion from Shutterstock (image ID 177722258). August 2017.
Pita bread image from KEKO64 at FreeDigitalPhotos.net. September 2014.
Teenage girls image from imagerymajestic at FreeDigitalPhotos.net. August 2014.
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Review key: HIANA-16978