Iron

For the most part, a balanced diet in kids will provide more than enough iron to make for good red blood cells, muscles, nerves, and brain cells. We will screen kids around 9-12 months of age for a low red blood cell count known as anemia. If the kiddo is a bit low on red blood cells, then the most common culprit is low iron in their diet or mom’s diet or a parental history of anemia. Usually, the first thing we do is start an iron supplement or multivitamin with iron and recheck the levels of the red blood cells in 3-ish months.

There are two types of nutritional iron: heme iron and non-heme iron. Heme iron comes from animal products such as meat, poultry, and seafood. Non-heme iron is found in lots of things like animal products but also in whole grains, nuts, and leafy greens. The big difference between heme and non-heme iron is that heme iron is much more easily absorbed and used in the body, while non-heme is not as easily absorbed and takes a bit more processing but still works. So even vegetarian kiddos usually get more than enough iron in their plant-based diets. But if I have a picky-eating vegetarian, I will often talk with families about possible vitamin supplements.

And vice versa, too much iron is not great as it can cause stomach upset and constipation; it can even reach toxic levels such as when a kiddo gets into their mom’s prenatal vitamins that usually have high levels of iron.

In short, if your kiddo does not look pale like a ghost all the time and has good energy and enthusiasm, they most likely have plenty of iron for their bodies.