Iron deficiency is the most common nutrient deficiency in North America so it’s something we all need to stay on top off.
There is a common misconception that vegans are unable to get enough iron in their diet due to not eating meat. When there are actually plenty of plant-based foods that are sources of iron such as lentils, soybeans, oats, and chickpeas.
It is possible to get enough iron from a plant-based diet, but there are two different dietary forms of iron. The form found in meat sources is called heme whilst the form found in plant-based sources is non-heme.
The form of iron found in meat is more bioavailable than the form that is found in plant-based foods.
For this reason, the recommended daily allowance for non-meat eaters is 1.8 times higher than for meat eaters.
According to the NHS the amount of iron you need as a meat-eater is:
- 8.7mg a day for men over 18
- 14.8mg a day for women aged 19-50 years
- 8.7mg a day for women over 50
That means that vegetarian woman aged between 19-50 need 33mg of iron a day. The amount of iron that you actually absorb from a meal varies on a whole bunch of factors including how bioavailable the source is and what else you have eaten.
Some minerals like Calcium inhibit the absorption of iron. This means just because you eat a meal with say 4.7mg of iron in, doesn’t mean that you absorb all of that iron.
Taking an iron supplement can be an easy alternative for people to manage their level of iron intake.
There are a lot of different vegan iron supplements on the market with a whole range of different dosages available, so you should always check with your doctor to make sure you are getting the right supplement for you.
8 Of The Top Selling Vegan Iron Supplements
We’ve put together a list of 8 of the top selling vegan iron supplements to help narrow down your search.
Click the images to check prices and customer reviews.
1. Nature Made – Iron 65 mg Tablets
65mg dosage - Great value for 180 tablets - Customers say the pills are small and little to no aftertaste
2. Garden of Life – Vitamin Code Raw Iron
22mg dosage - RAW, Vegan, Gluten Free, and Dairy Free with No Binders or Fillers - Also contains Vitamin C, B12 as methylcobalamin & Folate
3. Solgar – Gentle Iron
25mg dosage - Free of wheat, dairy, soy, yeast, sugar, sodium, artificial flavors, sweeteners, preservatives, and colors. - Customers say they have found it easier on the stomach than other iron supplements.
4. Garden of Life – Vitamin Code Healthy Blood
28mg dosage - Raw vegan, gluten free and no binders or fillers - Also contains vitamins C, B6 and B12 (as methylcobalamin)
5. Rainbow Light – Complete Iron Mini-Tabs
30mg dosage - Sustainable packaging - No artificial preservatives, colors, flavors or sweeteners
6. VegLife – Iron Vegan Tablet
25mg dosage - Small tablets, easy to take - Downside is that it contains folic acid & cyanocobalamin rather than folate and methylcobalamin
7. Deva Nutrition – Vegan Chelated Iron
29mg dosage - Good value for 90 tablets - Downside is it contains cyanocobalamin
8. Deva Nutrition – Vegan Vitamins Daily Multivitamin
Totally vegan multivitamin - Downside is it contains Folic acid & Cyanocobalamin
Sources: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vitamins-and-minerals/iron/ https://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/search/list?SYNCHRONIZER_TOKEN=e8f2fb8e-1561-42ec-a001-0a1028a44f29&SYNCHRONIZER_URI=%2Fndb%2Fsearch%2Flist&qt=&ds=&qlookup=&manu= https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/00051880.htm http://www.vrg.org/nutrition/iron.php Institute of Medicine, Food and Nutrition Board. Dietary Reference Intakes for Vitamin A, Vitamin K, Arsenic, Boron, Chromium, Copper, Iodine, Iron, Manganese, Molybdenum, Nickel, Silicon, Vanadium, and Zinc.Washington, DC: National Academy Press, 2001. Hallberg L. Bioavailability of dietary iron in man. Ann Rev Nutr 1981;1:123-147.