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 101–150 of 8,274 foods

#	Food	Category	Per 100 g	% DV	Source
101	Cereals ready-to-eat, QUAKER, QUAKER OAT LIFE, plain	Breakfast Cereals	29.33 mg	163%	USDA_SR
102	Cereals ready-to-eat, QUAKER, Oatmeal Squares	Breakfast Cereals	29.30 mg	163%	USDA_SR
103	Spices, rosemary, dried	Spices and Herbs	29.25 mg	162%	USDA_SR
104	Spices, rosemary, dried	Spices and Herbs	29.25 mg	162%	CNF
105	Cereals ready-to-eat, QUAKER, KING VITAMAN	Breakfast Cereals	29.00 mg	161%	USDA_SR
106	Cereals ready-to-eat, QUAKER Oatmeal Squares, Golden Maple	Breakfast Cereals	29.00 mg	161%	USDA_SR
107	Cereals ready-to-eat, GENERAL MILLS, CHEERIOS	Breakfast Cereals	28.90 mg	161%	USDA_SR
108	Cereals ready-to-eat, POST, HONEY BUNCHES OF OATS with vanilla bunches	Breakfast Cereals	28.90 mg	161%	USDA_SR
109	Cereals ready-to-eat, QUAKER, Maple Brown Sugar LIFE Cereal	Breakfast Cereals	28.69 mg	159%	USDA_SR
110	Cereals, CREAM OF WHEAT, regular, 10 minute cooking, dry	Breakfast Cereals	28.60 mg	159%	USDA_SR
111	Cereals, CREAM OF WHEAT, instant, dry	Breakfast Cereals	28.60 mg	159%	USDA_SR
112	Babyfood, cereal, wheat, with milk powder, dry	Babyfoods	28.51 mg	158%	CNF
113	Seaweed, spirulina, dried	Vegetables and Vegetable Products	28.50 mg	158%	USDA_SR
114	Seaweed, spirulina, dried	Vegetables and Vegetable Products	28.50 mg	158%	CNF
115	Cereals, CREAM OF RICE, dry	Breakfast Cereals	28.44 mg	158%	USDA_SR
116	Babyfood, cereal, rice, with milk powder and fruit, dry	Babyfoods	28.30 mg	157%	CNF
117	Cereals ready-to-eat, MALT-O-MEAL, TOOTIE FRUITIES	Breakfast Cereals	28.12 mg	156%	USDA_SR
118	Spices, sage, ground	Spices and Herbs	28.12 mg	156%	USDA_SR
119	Spices, sage, ground	Spices and Herbs	28.12 mg	156%	CNF
120	Cereals ready-to-eat, POST, Honey Nut Shredded Wheat	Breakfast Cereals	28.00 mg	156%	USDA_SR
121	Cereals ready-to-eat, POST Bran Flakes	Breakfast Cereals	28.00 mg	156%	USDA_SR
122	Cereals ready-to-eat, POST HONEY BUNCHES OF OATS with cinnamon bunches	Breakfast Cereals	28.00 mg	156%	USDA_SR
123	Cereals ready-to-eat, POST, GRAPE-NUTS Cereal	Breakfast Cereals	28.00 mg	156%	USDA_SR
124	Cereals ready-to-eat, POST GREAT GRAINS Banana Nut Crunch	Breakfast Cereals	28.00 mg	156%	USDA_SR
125	Cereals ready-to-eat, RALSTON Crispy Hexagons	Breakfast Cereals	27.93 mg	155%	USDA_SR
126	Cereals ready-to-eat, POST, GRAPE-NUTS Flakes	Breakfast Cereals	27.90 mg	155%	USDA_SR
127	Babyfood, cereal, oat, with milk powder, dry	Babyfoods	27.81 mg	154%	CNF
128	Babyfood, cereal, wheat, with milk powder and fruit, dry	Babyfoods	27.70 mg	154%	CNF
129	Cereals ready-to-eat, MALT-O-MEAL, Apple ZINGS	Breakfast Cereals	27.27 mg	152%	USDA_SR
130	Cereals ready-to-eat, MALT-O-MEAL, Crispy Rice	Breakfast Cereals	27.27 mg	152%	USDA_SR
131	Babyfood, cereal, rice, with milk powder, dry	Babyfoods	27.26 mg	151%	CNF
132	Cereals ready-to-eat, MALT-O-MEAL, OAT BLENDERS with honey	Breakfast Cereals	27.00 mg	150%	USDA_SR
133	Cereals ready-to-eat, POST, HONEY BUNCHES OF OATS, with real strawberries	Breakfast Cereals	26.10 mg	145%	USDA_SR
134	Babyfood, cereal, wheat, dry	Babyfoods	26.04 mg	145%	CNF
135	Babyfood, snack, biscuit, mixed grain	Babyfoods	25.96 mg	144%	CNF
136	Cereal, ready to eat, Honey Bunches of Oats (Honey Roasted), Post	Breakfast cereals	24.94 mg	139%	CNF
137	Beverages, UNILEVER, SLIMFAST Shake Mix, high protein, whey powder, 3-2-1 Plan,	Beverages	24.84 mg	138%	USDA_SR
138	Babyfood, finger snacks, GERBER, GRADUATES, PUFFS, apple and cinnamon	Baby Foods	24.74 mg	137%	USDA_SR
139	Cereals, oats, instant, fortified, plain, dry	Breakfast Cereals	24.72 mg	137%	USDA_SR
140	Babyfood, cereal, rice, dry	Babyfoods	24.49 mg	136%	CNF
141	Cereals ready-to-eat, MALT-O-MEAL, CHOCOLATE MARSHMALLOW MATEYS	Breakfast Cereals	24.00 mg	133%	USDA_SR
142	Cereals ready-to-eat, QUAKER, QUAKER OAT CINNAMON LIFE	Breakfast Cereals	23.22 mg	129%	USDA_SR
143	Babyfood, cereal, oat, with milk powder and fruit, dry	Babyfoods	23.17 mg	129%	CNF
144	Beverages, nutritional shake mix, high protein, powder	Beverages	22.50 mg	125%	USDA_SR
145	Babyfood, baked product, finger snacks cereal fortified	Baby Foods	22.50 mg	125%	USDA_SR
146	Beverages, high protein powder	Beverages	22.50 mg	125%	CNF
147	Spices, parsley, dried	Spices and Herbs	22.04 mg	122%	USDA_SR
148	Incaparina, dry mix (corn and soy flours), unprepared	Breakfast Cereals	22.00 mg	122%	USDA_SR
149	Cereals ready-to-eat, QUAKER, Cap'n Crunch's OOPS! All Berries Cereal	Breakfast Cereals	21.57 mg	120%	USDA_SR
150	Seaweed, agar, dried	Vegetables and Vegetable Products	21.40 mg	119%	USDA_SR

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Vegetarian foods high in Iron

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