Vegetarian foods high in Iron

Red meat and poultry dominate this ranking because their iron binds easily to the proteins that carry oxygen through your blood. Animal tissues contain haem iron, the form your body absorbs with the fewest obstacles. Plant foods hold non-haem iron, which your gut takes up less readily and only when other compounds in the meal do not block it.

Iron concentrates in organ meats, then muscle meats, then leafy greens and legumes. A single ranking cannot show you absorption rates. Two foods with the same iron count per 100 g deliver different amounts to your bloodstream depending on what else you eat alongside them.

Without animal foods, you lose access to haem iron. Plant sources and fortified foods supply non-haem iron instead, which your body absorbs at a lower rate and loses to interference from phytates, tannins and polyphenols in the same meal. Eating vitamin C alongside iron-rich plants improves uptake substantially. Many fortified cereals and plant milks contain added iron in amounts comparable to meat, but absorption remains the limiting factor on a vegetarian or vegan diet.

FDA daily value: 18 mg

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Showing 601–650 of 8,274 foods

# Food Category Per 100 g % DV Source
601 Grains, amaranth, flour Cereals, Grains and Pasta 7.55 mg 42% CNF
602 Lima beans, large, mature seeds, raw Legumes and Legume Products 7.51 mg 42% USDA_SR
603 Beans, lima, dry, large, raw Legumes and Legume Products 7.51 mg 42% CNF
604 Babyfood, cereal, oatmeal, with applesauce and bananas, junior, fortified Baby Foods 7.50 mg 42% USDA_SR
605 Babyfood, cereal, oatmeal, with applesauce and bananas, strained Baby Foods 7.50 mg 42% USDA_SR
606 Infant formula, MEAD JOHNSON, ENFAMIL, ENFAGROW, GENTLEASE, Toddler transitions, with ARA and DHA, powder Baby Foods 7.50 mg 42% USDA_SR
607 Gravy, brown instant, dry Soups, Sauces, and Gravies 7.40 mg 41% USDA_SR
608 Toddler formula, MEAD JOHNSON, ENFAGROW, Toddler Transitions, with ARA and DHA, powder Baby Foods 7.40 mg 41% USDA_SR
609 Gravy, brown instant, dry Soups, Sauces and Gravies 7.40 mg 41% CNF
610 Lentils, pink or red, raw Legumes and Legume Products 7.39 mg 41% USDA_SR
611 Lentils, pink, raw Legumes and Legume Products 7.39 mg 41% CNF
612 Cereal, ready to eat, Muslix: Almond Raisin, Kellogg's Breakfast cereals 7.35 mg 41% CNF
613 Flour, soy, defatted Legumes and Legume Products 7.34 mg 41% USDA_FF
614 Wheat flour, white, cake, enriched Cereal Grains and Pasta 7.32 mg 41% USDA_SR
615 Beans, Dry, Light Tan (0% moisture) Legumes and Legume Products 7.29 mg 40% USDA_FF
616 Beans, Dry, Light Tan (0% moisture) Legumes and Legume Products 7.29 mg 40% USDA_FF
617 Seeds, watermelon seed kernels, dried Nut and Seed Products 7.28 mg 40% USDA_SR
618 Seeds, watermelon seed kernels, dried Nuts and Seeds 7.28 mg 40% CNF
619 Babyfood, cereal, rice, prepared with formula or breast milk Babyfoods 7.22 mg 40% CNF
620 Seasoning mix, dry, taco, original Spices and Herbs 7.20 mg 40% USDA_SR
621 Egg, whole, dried Dairy and Egg Products 7.20 mg 40% USDA_SR
622 Seasoning mix, taco, dry mix Spices and Herbs 7.20 mg 40% CNF
623 Elk, free range, ground, raw (Shoshone Bannock) American Indian/Alaska Native Foods 7.17 mg 40% USDA_SR
624 Lentils, dry Legumes and Legume Products 7.16 mg 40% USDA_FF
625 Babyfood, cereal, ready to eat, 'O' shaped Babyfoods 7.14 mg 40% CNF
626 Pancakes, whole wheat, dry mix, incomplete Baked Products 7.11 mg 40% USDA_SR
627 Desserts, rennin, tablets, unsweetened Sweets 7.07 mg 39% USDA_SR
628 Dessert, rennin, tablets, unsweetened Sweets 7.07 mg 39% CNF
629 Spices, allspice, ground Spices and Herbs 7.06 mg 39% USDA_SR
630 Spices, allspice, ground Spices and Herbs 7.06 mg 39% CNF
631 Wheat flour, white, tortilla mix, enriched Cereal Grains and Pasta 7.05 mg 39% USDA_SR
632 Potatoes, baked, skin only, with salt Vegetables and Vegetable Products 7.04 mg 39% USDA_SR
633 Potatoes, baked, skin, without salt Vegetables and Vegetable Products 7.04 mg 39% USDA_SR
634 Potato, skin, baked, with salt Vegetables and Vegetable Products 7.04 mg 39% CNF
635 Potato, skin, baked Vegetables and Vegetable Products 7.04 mg 39% CNF
636 Beans, yellow, mature seeds, raw Legumes and Legume Products 7.01 mg 39% USDA_SR
637 Beans, yellow, raw Legumes and Legume Products 7.01 mg 39% CNF
638 Sesame butter, creamy Nut and Seed Products 7.00 mg 39% USDA_FF
639 Sea lion, Steller, kidney (Alaska Native) American Indian/Alaska Native Foods 7.00 mg 39% USDA_SR
640 Egg, whole, dried Dairy and Egg Products 6.97 mg 39% USDA_FF
641 Babyfood, cereal, oat, with milk powder and fruit, prepared with water Babyfoods 6.97 mg 39% CNF
642 Beans, Dry, Light Red Kidney (0% moisture) Legumes and Legume Products 6.95 mg 39% USDA_FF
643 Beans, Dry, Light Red Kidney (0% moisture) Legumes and Legume Products 6.95 mg 39% USDA_FF
644 Waffles, plain, frozen, ready -to-heat, toasted Baked Products 6.91 mg 38% USDA_SR
645 Waffle, plain, frozen, ready-to-heat, toasted Baked Products 6.91 mg 38% CNF
646 Babyfood, cereal, mixed, with applesauce and bananas, junior, fortified Baby Foods 6.81 mg 38% USDA_SR
647 Babyfood, cereal, mixed, with applesauce and bananas, strained Baby Foods 6.81 mg 38% USDA_SR
648 Seeds, sunflower seed kernels, toasted, without salt Nut and Seed Products 6.81 mg 38% USDA_SR
649 Seeds, sunflower seed kernels, toasted, with salt added Nut and Seed Products 6.81 mg 38% USDA_SR
650 Seeds, sunflower seed kernels, toasted, salted Nuts and Seeds 6.81 mg 38% CNF

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