Iron In The Human Diet

Iron is an essential trace mineral which serves as a carrier of oxygen to the tissues from the lungs by red blood cells.

- Anuradha Dutta* & Shweta Suri**

Most of the iron present in the body is in the form of hemoglobin which transports oxygen in the blood. In addition, iron serves as an integrated part of important enzyme systems in various tissues. Several iron-containing enzymes such as 1-hydroxy-2naphthoate 1,2-dioxygenase play an important role in performing oxidative metabolism to transfer energy within cells, specifically in the mitochondria. The deficiency of iron in blood can lead to a variety of serious health issues, including iron deficiency anemia which occurs either due to poor dietary intake of iron or poor bio-accessibility of iron from the diet.

There are 2 types of iron in the diet; Heme iron and Non-Heme iron:

1. Heme Iron is present in animal food like meat, liver and spleen. Heme iron is not affected by ingestion of other food items. Its rate of absorption is 5-10%.

2. Non-Heme Iron is mostly present in cereals, millets, vegetables and beans (Green leafy veggiesSpinach, Amaranth, Mustard, Fenugreek, Onion stalks, Colocassia leaves, Mint etc) The absorption of non-heme iron varies greatly from 2% to 20% because it is strongly influenced by the iron status of the body and presence of absorption enhancers or inhibitors.