Foods high in iron - DC is Anemic

My toddler, who only eats applesauce, yogurt, chicken and pizza has (as no surprise) tested as anemic. DC spits everything else out so I am at a loss as to what to feed DC to help their iron. Refuses most, if not all, red meat (just like mom!)...I was looking into the Earths best Sesame Street snacks and a few are surprisingly high in iron. I also found the HappyBaby/Tot pouch in Spinach Mango that is high in iron. Do you guys have any other recs? I think the pouches or snacks would be great snack supplements to help DC get enough Iron and was wondering if any of you have experience/recs with anything similar that is also high in iron? TIA.

Foods high in iron - DC is Anemic

Cheerios
Pancakes made with baby cereal
Fish sticks
Cook in a cast iron skillet (I've heard this can add iron!)

Re: Foods high in iron - DC is Anemic

Does he consume a lot of milk? That can cause anemia in toddlers.. My son barely eats anything and I had to cut back on his milk because he was drinking too much and my pedi told me it can cause anemia in him...

Message edited 2/1/2013 3:00:34 AM.

Re: Foods high in iron - DC is Anemic

Chicken is on the list of foods high in iron so that is good...

Beef
shrimp
chicken
lamb
Egg yolks
beans
lentils
chickpeas
tomato paste
soy nuts
whole wheat bread
fortified cereals
spinach
broccoli

You need vit c to better absorb plant based iron. Can you work in strawberries, oranges, pineapples or other items to increase your DC's vit c? It will help absorb.

Can you put chicken on whole wheat pizza?

Will your DC eat chicken meatballs made with tomato paste?

Have you tried making chicken soup with whole wheat pasta?

What about oatmeal I think many of the hot cereals are fortified.

Can your DC eat shrimp? They are high in iron.

Can you make maybe a lasagna with spinach or pasta with chicken and broccoli hidden in it.

The spinach mango packs are great bc you get the iron and vit c together. If your DC eats chicken that is good but maybe your dc isn't absorbing enough bc they aren't getting enough vit c.

Re: Foods high in iron - DC is Anemic

Does he take vitamins? FYI gummies do not have iron in them, so I would stick with a Flinstones type (not necessarily that brand)

Cereal is fortified with iron, but the milk just cancels it out.

Foods high in iron - DC is Anemic

Hide things in the pizza. My sisters DS was only eating pizza so she would "hide" veggies in it. Worked perfectly.

Re: Foods high in iron - DC is Anemic

Cream of wheat for breakfast is a great source of iron. I think raisins are too.

Re: Foods high in iron - DC is Anemic

Have you spoken to your ped at Fer In Sol?
It's a liquid iron supplement. OTC but hard to find in stores- I get it online.
It's made by Enfamil
My DD takes it. She BARELY eats anything- much less anything with iron

Message edited 2/1/2013 9:13:43 AM.

Foods high in iron - DC is Anemic

My DD needs iron too - I got the Ply V Sol with added iron. Good luck!

Re: Foods high in iron - DC is Anemic

Re: Foods high in iron - DC is Anemic

Re: Foods high in iron - DC is Anemic

The baby oatmeal is high in iron. I gave that to my kids for a long time. Cheerios are good too

Re: Foods high in iron - DC is Anemic

DS eats organic, lean ground beef...red meat is SUPER high in iron. We cook it and add some tomato sauce since the vitamin c in the tomato will help to absorb the iron.

Dark meat chicken is also higher in iron than white meat. Dark leafy greens, my DS hates spinach but will eat it in the Plum Baby Organics "spinach peas and pear" flavor...it's actually delicious.

Also highly recommend a vitamin that is food based, the body absorbs it much better. We use Rainbow Light and mix it into his yogurt:
http://www.amazon.com/Rainbow-Light-NutriStart-Multivitamin-Supplement/dp/B000OQ7OHC/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1359731565&sr=8-3&keywords=rainbow+light+kids+vitamins

Good luck!!

Message edited 2/1/2013 10:15:17 AM.

Re: Foods high in iron - DC is Anemic

do you juice? if you do thats a great way of getting iron in with picky eaters. iron rich foods could be masked with sweet fruits

Re: Foods high in iron - DC is Anemic

My DD is a VERY light eater and has been her whole life - so far thank god she has not had an issue. My biggest way of combating this - look for everything FORTIFIED! It was a big issue for me when yotoddler stonyfield yogurt stopped making an iron fortified yogurt

Almost all the Earth's Best frozen foods are fortified and have a good amount of iron in them - for breakfast: frozen waffles or french toast sticks - for lunch and dinner they have fish nuggets and chicken nuggets and also mac dishes. And, the best part is that it is organic and non-gmo!

Is this the perfect way to get them iron - definitely not - but, with some kids it is the only way. My first eats like a champ and I always thought with my second if I just tried harder ...nope, I've learned - some kids just won't eat the meats, chicken, etc. ..

HTH!

Re: Foods high in iron - DC is Anemic

Re: Foods high in iron - DC is Anemic

Posted by itsbabytime

My DD is a VERY light eater and has been her whole life - so far thank god she has not had an issue. My biggest way of combating this - look for everything FORTIFIED! It was a big issue for me when yotoddler stonyfield yogurt stopped making an iron fortified yogurt

Almost all the Earth's Best frozen foods are fortified and have a good amount of iron in them - for breakfast: frozen waffles or french toast sticks - for lunch and dinner they have fish nuggets and chicken nuggets and also mac dishes. And, the best part is that it is organic and non-gmo!

Is this the perfect way to get them iron - definitely not - but, with some kids it is the only way. My first eats like a champ and I always thought with my second if I just tried harder ...nope, I've learned - some kids just won't eat the meats, chicken, etc. ..

HTH!