Does your child need more iron? Mine does!March 2nd, 2009 @ 6:59 pm
Today I took my 12 month-old to the pediatrician because of a strange rash that had developed on his upper thighs. It was red, purple and blue-ish, like tiny bruises. I looked it up on the internet (which I am sure my pediatrician was thrilled at my self-diagnosis) and found a similar appearing rash called petechiae. Our pediatrician also thought it looked very similar to petechiae and took some blood samples and thankfully found that Jude’s blood platelet count was perfectly normal! But, she did discover that he was very anemic, which I was quite surprised about as I thought that my breastfeeding supplied him with all of the nutrients he needed . She suggested iron supplement drops which I am okay with doing, but I also wanted to find some foods he can have that are high in iron. So, here is a list I have compiled…very interesting! 
BTW Children under 4 need 15mg of iron per day.
| Meat | Serving |
Iron (mg) |
| Chicken liver, cooked | 3½ ounces | 12.8 |
| Oysters, breaded and fried | 6 pieces | 4.5 |
| Beef, chuck, lean only, braised | 3 ounces | 3.2 |
| Clams, breaded, fried | ¾ cup | 3.0 |
| Beef, tenderloin, roasted | 3 ounces | 3.0 |
| Turkey, dark meat, roasted | 3½ ounces | 2.3 |
| Beef, eye of round, roasted | 3 ounces | 2.2 |
| Turkey, light meat, roasted | 3½ ounces | 1.6 |
| Chicken, leg, meat only, roasted | 3½ ounces | 1.3 |
| Tuna, fresh bluefin, cooked, dry heat | 3 ounces | 1.1 |
| Chicken, breast, roasted | 3 ounces | 1.1 |
| Halibut, cooked, dry heat | 3 ounces | 0.9 |
| Crab, blue crab, cooked, moist heat | 3 ounces | 0.8 |
| Pork, loin, broiled | 3 ounces | 0.8 |
| Tuna, white, canned in water | 3 ounces | 0.8 |
| Shrimp, mixed species, cooked, moist heat | 4 large | 0.7 |
| Veggies and fruits | Serving | Iron (mg) |
| Sea Vegetables | ½ cup | 18-42 |
| Swiss chard | ½ cup | 2 |
| Turnip greens | ½ cup | 1.6 |
| Spinach, cooked | ½ cup | 1.5 |
| Beet greens, cooked | ½ cup | 1.4 |
| Potato | ½ cup | 1.4 |
| Bok Choy | ½ cup | .7 |
| Peas | ½ cup | .65 |
| Green Beans | ½ cup | .6 |
| Tomato Juice | ½ cup | .6 |
| Dried Figs | 5 | 2.0 |
| Dried Apricots | 5 | 1.6 |
| Broccoli | ½ cup | .55 |
| Prune Juice | 4 oz | 1.5 |
| Water Melon | 1/8 of melon | .5 |
| Soy Products | Serving | Iron (mg) |
| Tofu | ½ cup | 6.6 |
| Soy Beans | ½ cup | 4.4 |
| Tempeh | ½ cup | 1.8 |
| Soy Milk | ½ cup | .9 |
| Nuts, Seeds and Legumes | Serving | Iron (mg) |
| Sunflower Seeds | 2 TBS | 1.2 |
| Lentils | ½ cup | 3.2 |
| Pinto Beans | ½ cup | 2.2 |
| Black eyed beans | ½ cup | 2.6 |
| Navy Beans | ½ cup | 2.5 |
| Chick Peas | 200 g | 6.2 |
| Pumpkin Seeds | 2 TBS | 2.5 |
| Almonds | ¼ cup | 1.3 |
Mommy Thoughts
