Iron Fortified Foods in Japan

This fall, my routine health check up revealed my hemoglobin count is low and I have iron deficiency anemia.

I had noticed some symptoms like getting tired more quickly than usual, so it was a relief to get this diagnosis. I've been educating myself on how to remedy the situation so I feel back to my energetic self.

At the doctor's consultation, I was told to eat more protein and given a pamphlet. There are some good points there, but I wasn't really into the idea of getting an iron supplement in addition to being more careful about what I eat.

Foods I consume on a regular basis (brown rice, eggs, leafy greens, dark chocolate, nuts, beans) are helpful, but maybe I need an extra boost. I've been trying to eat more seafood (oysters!) and meat, plus finding the foods I like that aren't so common in Japan (lentils, quinoa, beet root...) and are good for me too. 

I found quite a few foods that are iron-fortified and have already tried some of them. I tend to feel a little better the following day but am not using any of these daily as of now.

First, I noticed some differences between Japan and the US, where I'm from. Recommended daily intake of iron from foods depends on sex, age, and other factors. I noticed that 18mg is recommended for me in the US, but only 11mg in Japan.

In the US, grains are heavily fortified, but not as much in Japan. Any cereals and grains imported from the US are likely to be high in iron. 

This is the label from the frosted flake cereal, Siscorn BIG, with the iron part circled (鉄). (鉄分 is sometimes used on labels too.)

There is so much to consider, from types of iron in foods (heme and non-heme), absorption levels, and polyphenols that might inhibit absorption. I have to keep in mind to eat a more balanced diet, getting plenty of vitamin C from fruits and umeboshi.

Drinking too much coffee and tea is also potentially lowering my iron absorption. It seems that drinking coffee and tea between meals is safer than with a meal.

There is also a lot of controversial content online claiming that dairy products or calcium inhibit the absorption of iron in foods. I was surprised to learn that in Japan, it wasn't grains that are fortified with iron, but dairy products.

Calcium and iron fortified milk by Glico, in juice box size (88 yen) or liter size (179 yen) is not for me, but I do eat cheese.

Iron fortified baby cheese by TopValu (Aeon) is under 100 yen for a 4 pack and provides 1.8mg of iron per piece.

I haven't tried this light iron prune drink by Kagome. It has some probacteria in it and each 80ml drink has 7.5mg of iron. A three pack is 148 yen.

Prunes are a popular theme too. Daily iron prune drinking yogurt has 3.9mg of iron in each serving. The taste was a little weird to me, but Megumilk also makes a yogurt with 6.8mg of iron in 100 gr. I liked the taste better, but the drinking yogurt is still more convenient on the go.

On the non-dairy side, this Tropicana mango drink doesn't taste like a fortified drink and claims to make up the amount of iron most people are lacking in their daily diets. 99 yen per pack and easy to drink while at work.

This similar low calorie juice, prune and peach flavor, has even more iron plus folic acid (yousan, the kanji in the blue part) and vitamin B12. It's also about 99 yen. It's not for sale at my nearest store, but I'd like to get this again.

I plan to incorporate Milo chocolate powder into my routine, maybe not daily, but when I don't rush out early in the day. For about 300 yen for a 240 gr bag, Milo has around 3mg of iron per serving.

Winter seems like a nice time for a hot soy milk with Milo, which is also fortified with lots of other nutrients and vitamins. Think Ovaltine or instant hot chocolate mix fortified with a multivitamin.

In this way, I think I can avoid using supplements, which I don't think I'll remember to take daily anyway.