foods 021Originally uploaded by wjharrison77.
Lots of good things have happened this year already. Too many to list, really. But, without a doubt, the absolute best thing that has happened to me in the last six months is this: I discovered that I have a severe iron deficiency.
For years and years I have been absolutely exhausted most of the time. And I’ve always thought this was totally normal. I put my constant fatigue down to a crazy work life. So I couldn’t stay awake after 9pm at night? So I needed several days to get over a day of activity? So if I didn’t get 10 hours sleep per night I couldn’t function? That was normal, right? WRONG! It’s not!
When I mentioned one day to my doctor that my hair had started to snap off she did some tests. It turned out that I had an extremely low iron reserve count and so I was put on an very high dosage of iron tablets. All I expected was to have my hair grow in healthier. What I got was my energy back.
I feel great! And I didn’t even know I felt crap in the first place!
In a bid to maintain my new vigour I am supplementing my daily 1200 mg of Ferrous Sulphate with an iron rich diet. Lots of green vegetables, red meat and red wine. Sounds like my kind of diet. 
Apparently the body can have difficulty soaking up iron from leafy greens. Eating vitamin C rich foods along with these vegetables can improve this absorption. Which is why I can often be found snacking on the following salad.
It’s very pretty too.
Ruby Red Grapefruit & Baby Spinach Salad
Large handful of baby spinach
1 ruby red grapefruit
Black olives
Extra virgin olive oil
Black pepper
- Remove peel from grapefruit using a knife. Half the fruit and remove all pith. Some juice should have seeped from the fruit at this point. Pour this into a small bowl.
- Add a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil and a good grinding of black pepper to the grapefruit juice. Mix well using a fork.
- In a bowl toss the spinach and dressing until the leaves are lightly coated. Remove the spinach to a large plate.
- Add grapefruit slices and olives and a little more pepper.
And, of course, dark chocolate is full of iron too…
Very pretty salad!
This post is very informative! A friend of mine also has iron deficiency, but she’s getting better now.
I love grapefruit in salad. :d
looks pretty but I can’t stomach the sourness of the pink grapefruit! I bought a grapefruit juice a while back and just couldn’t drink it!
But I understand the iron deficiency thing – I get it every now and again and find tablets help – it is a pain but makes you try and eat well at least! And it must be a great thing to rediscover your energy reserves.
That looks very refreshing, Wendy. I’ve never tried putting grapefruit in my salad, so this is a great idea for me to try, thanks!
Lucy – Dark chocolate, you say? That I didn’t know.
Anh – Glad you’re friend is getting better too!
Johanna – The red grapefruit isn’t quite as sour as the yellow or pink. That said, I sometimes eat limes so I’m perhaps not someone you want to listen to on the subject of sourness.
Nora – Refreshing is a perfect word for it.
Simple salads are so wonderful as they are good for you and EASY to fix! I love fruit in salads. So many ways to use it. I also love throwing in a few pecans, walnuts, pine nuts to give it some crunch! Keep drinking that red wine – it really is good for you!
This is a great summer salad and perfect as I too have an iron deficiency.
I just posted a new recipe for ginger cookies, which contain unrefined molasses which is apparently high in iron – thought the quantity in the recipe is small I keep telling myself this so I can have just one more
Deb – Totally agree, Deb. Adore pecans especially. Unfortunately, they are extremely pricey across here.
Erika – Didn’t know molasses was iron-rich. Will definitely check out your recipe.
Wendy,
Good to know that you’re feeling better – my grandmother has the same problem and we all know how bad it is.
Your salad is delightful! I love spinach and I bet it’s wonderful paired with something citrus.
Thank you for visiting my blog – I’m glad because now I know yours, too!
Welcome Patricia! And thank you!
Not as exciting a suggestion as Lucy’s dark chocolate but a good one if you eat it regularly – it’s worth picking out a breakfast cereal that is fortified with iron. Love the leafy spinach and grapefruit/vitamin C combo – much more imaginative than the usual glass of orange juice on the side!
Sophie – Hadn’t thought of the cereal idea at all. And I do love my cereal!
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