Hi Everyone,

Its MOnndaaaaay Again! so that means a Top 5 List :D… Like I have mentioned many times before when you go Vegan you start to pay a lot more attention to what you are putting into your body, and you also start getting a lot of questions about WHY you are vegan and WHAT do you eat… and so many concerns about your health and well being… where do you get protein? Calcium or IRON!

well… l already did a Blog on Protein a few weeks ago HERE, but lets talk about IRON for a little bit.. since there a huge misconception that the only and Best source of Iron is Red meat…

SO here is the mind blowing Truth….

Although IRON is VERY Important for Energy Production, Health and Immunity… Too much Iron in our Body can be very harmful as well! too much IRON makes it difficult for our Body to get rid of the excess and it has been linked to Heart disease, arthritis & liver and pancreas degeneration!

As far as what Iron is and what it is doing… believe it or not RED meat or other meat sources are NOT the best Source of Iron for your body… There are Basically two different types of iron available in foods: ‘hem-iron’ and ‘non hem-iron’

Hem-iron Comes from animals… it has already been absorbed by the animals and we are getting it second hand…our bodies Absorb Hemp-Iron very fast because its already been processed…

Non hem-iron comes from Vegetables, greens, Legumes… and our body has to work to extract Iron from these foods and they

are not as easily absorbed by our bodies! but that is not a bad thing!

BECAUSE the Iron from Animals has already been processed our body cannot monitor the amount of IRON intake and we can consume too much Iron… with Veggies, because our bodies have to extract it they filter and control the amount needed...therefore our body is protected from consuming too much IRON!!!

Top 5 non hem-Iron Picks 🙂 there you have it… now here are my

1. Dark Leafy Greens

Believe it or not… Greens actually contain more iron when cooked than when eaten raw!!!

cooked SPINACH has 6.43 mg of iron per 1 cup (180g) when cooked.

2. Whole Grains

Whole grains are another great source of iron . to name just a few… quinoa, oatmeal, barley, rice, bulgur, buckwheat and millet.

Quinoa, for example, contains 2.76 mg of iron for a 1 cup serving.

3. Nuts

Another GREAT source of Iron,

our of all Nuts Cashews contain the most IRON at 8.22 mg of iron in 1 cup. Almonds also have 5.32 mg/cup Macadamias and pistachios are a close third and fourth. They both contain almost 5 mg per cup, respectively.

4. Legumes

Beans, beans the musical Fruit… the more you eat the more….you get Iron!!!

kidney beans : One cup provides3.93 mg of iron.

5. Dark Chocolate and Cocoa Powder

WHATTTTTTttttt??? well this one is a TREAT!!! haha…

yes its true…Dark chocolate (70-85% cacao solids) contains more iron, ounce for ounce, than beef – a lot more! A 3 oz. portion of cooked ground beef (70% lean meat, 30% fat) contains 2.11mg of iron, while 3 oz. of dark chocolate boasts 10.12mg …. so please leave the cows alone 🙂 have chocolate instead 😀

So there you have it… if someone asks you where you get your IRON from.. you can not only educate them about these Iron Rich..wonderful green and legumes but also let them know that it is the BEST source of Iron over meat for a healthy well functioning body…

Hope you guys found this useful! I’ll be back with more TOP 5 lists next Monday.. but please check back daily for vegan and cruelty free goodness ;D

as always YOU’RE WELCOME!

love & Peace

Vegan Needs…