Vegetarian Mamas- Need Iron Help!

Awesome recommendations below. I did blood builder while pregnant too, but my iron kept falling. My midwife recommended I take liquid chlorophyll daily and that seemed to keep me out of the seriously anemic range. I can't remember exactly why she thought chlorophyll was so important - but it has something to do with the hemoglobin in chlorophyll being almost the same as human blood hemoglobin (but with magnesium, not iron) and so it augmented my blood and allowed my body to absorb more iron. Something like that.

I don't know that the brand matters, but I took one from Sunshine Health. It takes like you're drinking grass, which is kind of awful. But if nothing else is working, maybe add this in too?

I would leave the figuring out why it's not absorbing to your Dr. He is the only one with access to your labs. In the meantime, eat additional iron rich foods.

Do you eat eggs? I know some vegetarians who do, some who don't. Egg yolks have a lot of iron. Lentils are high in iron. Pumpkin seeds, quinoa, sweet potatoes, kidney beans, black beans. I can't eat red meat often, because it gives me headaches. I eat all those foods often, to get enough iron.

**You don't have to eat a bloody steak!! IF you did decided to eat meat instead of injections, you have options. Clams are very high in iron. You could get ground sirloin and make tacos or something. Chicken has iron, much more then you are eating now.

ETA: Many nuts are high in iron. I am allergic and can't eat them, so I forgot to add that.

It sounds like you are getting enough iron, just aren't absorbing it, so if you ate meat you would still not likely absorb it. I believe that calcium prevents the absorption of iron, are you consuming calcium at the same time? Maybe check that out. I would for sure follow up with the doc, they will have the best ideas for you. Hopefully just switching up the time of day or something that you take the iron will help.

I am vegetarian, and I used to take a multivitamin with iron because I was worried about iron. My labs showed my iron was too high. So I really think your problem is not with the iron, it's with the absorption. Check about caclium, keep a food log to show your doc, and keep on top of it. Good luck!

Being anemic off and on my whole life, leafy, green veggies are a must for me. Spinach, broccoli, peas, asparagus. I eat these almost every day.
Also, look for iron-enriched breads and pastas. Beans are a great source.
Finally, get an iron skillet. Cooking acidic and/or foods with higher moisture content in an iron skillet adds iron to your diet in an easy way. Stir often and cook longer to maximize the iron to the foods.
Unfortunately for you, iron is absorbed 3 times better from a meat source. Do you eat fish or shellfish at all anymore? These are also great sources.
Vitamin C helps with iron absorption. However, your body can only absorb so much Vitamin C at one time. It's important to drink citrus juices or fruits throughout the day to assist with iron absorption. Don't do an overkill though. Too much can upset your stomach!

Pinto beans are great for iron. Try eating them on chips with cheese or make vegetarian chilly. Blackeye peas on salads, chickpeas on salads too. Or make bean soup. That's how I keep my iron up, I have anemia. So it's a constant battle trying to keep my iron up being a vegetarian too. Hope this helps!

If you drink milk with iron it will cancel the iron out. I think it's the calcium as another mama mentioned. I've always been borderline anemic, especially when pregnant. I remember reading the literature that comes with the iron supplements and it listed a whole bunch of stuff to avoid when taking it. Does your blood builder have something like that? That's something to look into also, to make sure what you're eating with the iron isn't blocking it. Good luck!

Did you tell your Doctor, what you are taking and how much and how often???? And that you are a vegetarian etc.?
I would follow doctor's orders and what is needed medically. And because you are pregnant. And you need to tell him/her everything about your own intake and what you are taking.
Until then, you are only guessing.

I'm a vegetarian. When pregnant, I take blood builder and I snack on almonds and cheese. I also eat a lot of beans...and lentils. My blood work is usually fine at the first check, and around 10 at my second, and then I start with the blood builder and it shoots up.

Even my meat eating friends have become iron deficient while pregnant. If you don't want to eat the meat, I suggest you do some green leafy juicing. Invest in a good juicer (you can get them from between $60 -$120). Buy kale and spinach, beat greens, collard greens... and juice it. You can take it like shots or mix it with some fruits like apples and pears to make it palatable. Juicing is a great way to get vitamin and mineral boosts. I personally eat about a watermelon a week while pregnant (i eat very little meat, but am not a strict vegetarian). I wondered what made me crave watermellon while pregnant and its high in iron. I love dr.s, I married one, but they suck at nutrition. You can do this without meat if thats important to you.

I drink soy protein shakes and I think that could help you. Be sure you get Non-GMO Soy that is processed correctly. Shoot me a message if you would like a link.

The top rated iron supplement is Floradix Iron and Herbs. I've always been vegetarian and very healthy but my iron plummeted when pregnant. I got so desperate I actually ate some red meat-which didn't help. I got the recommendation from a super high profile Dr. It brought me from severe iron deficiency right back up to perfect quickly. I used the liquid and ordered online, but most health food stores have it. It happens to be vegetarian and kosher, but most importantly it is the best one regardless of being vegetarian or not.

Pumpkin seeds
80% Dark Chocolate
Dried Thyme
Sulfite free dried apricots
Lentils
Potatoes
Quinoa
Spinach
Kidney Beans
Dates
Figs