Iron deficiency can be prevented by eating a well-balanced diet that includes iron-rich foods. Iron from meat and seafood sources is better absorbed by the body. However, you can improve iron absorption from non-meat and non-seafood sources by consuming them together with foods and liquids rich in Vitamin C.
Foods that are rich in iron content can be found in the following (ranked from highest to lowest per standard serving with each category):
Vegetable
- Kang kong
- Spinach (bayam pasir)
- Chinese kale (kai lan)
Meat and seafood
- Pork kidney
- Chicken liver or pork liver
- Lean beef or lean mutton
- Canned tomato sardines
- Lean pork
Beans, nuts, seeds, soy products
- Lentils
- Green gram or red gram
- Cashew nuts
- Sunflower seeds or watermelon seeds
- White soya beans
- Pistachios
- Soya beancurd, tofu
Fruits
- Dried figs or dried longans
- Dried black dates or dried red dates
- Semi-dried prunes
Rice and alternatives
- Bran flakes
- Cornflakes
- Wholemeal pasta