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Focus On Nutrition
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Previously Asked Questions
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My 16 month old is slightly anemic. Do you have any suggestions for how I can increase his iron intake with healthy foods? We are using supplements; however, we prefer to use diet to correct this problem. He loves his veggies, fruits, and whole grains, but he hasn't been a big meat eater.
Answer
If the supplements were ordered by your physician, then it is important for him to continue them and be monitored by the physician.
While heme iron (found only in meat, fish and poultry) is absorbed by the body more easily, there are a variety of different foods that contain non-heme iron (found primarily in fruits, vegetables, dried beans, nuts and grain products). These include whole-grain or fortified breads and cereals, dried fruits, beans, such as pinto, refried and black beans, enriched pasta and molasses. In addition, many cereals are iron fortified.
Eating non-heme iron foods with an acidic food will increase the iron absorption – examples would be oranges, grapefruits, tomatoes, broccoli and strawberries. Mashed pinto beans cooked in a warm tortilla and topped with grated cheese is another good source of iron -- and is easy for toddlers to eat.
Don't be too concerned about his meat intake. Many toddlers don't consume a lot of meat. However, continue to offer it to him. It is common for children to try a new food 10 or 20 times before accepting it. Some lean cooked, ground meat mixed into mashed beans is an easy way to get him to start eating meat.
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