What Has More Iron Than Spinach?
Extreme fatigue, a rapid heartbeat, shortness of breath, and difficulty focusing sound like symptoms that would send most people running to their doctor’s office. But they can also be signs of a very common mineral deficiency—the most common nutritional disorder in the world, according to the World Health Organization.
“Iron carries oxygen through our blood to our muscles and brain, making it crucial for both mental and physical health and performance,” says dietitian Brigitte Zeitlin, RD, owner of BZ Nutrition. The mineral is also essential for helping maintain a healthy immune system, regulating body temperature, and digestion and absorption of other nutrients—which explains why a lack of it, known as iron-deficiency anemia, can lead to the symptoms described above.
Excerpted from Reader’s Digest
