Dietary minerals are chemical elements required by living organisms. They can be either bulk minerals (required in relatively large amounts, macro minerals, grams or milligrams per day) or trace minerals (required only in very small amounts, micro or pico grams) Appropriate intake levels of each dietary mineral must be sustained to maintain physical health. Excessive intake of a dietary mineral may either lead to illness directly or indirectly because of the competitive nature between mineral levels in the body. So be careful how many rocks you eat and keep the kids away from the lead paint on the wall. Feed them Gummi bears instead.  Sometimes minerals are added to the diet separately from food, as vitamin and mineral supplements and in dirt eating, called pica or geophagy.

 Essential  Pronunciation: ĕs`sĕn´sjal  or i-sen-chl a :basic and fundamental  a: being a substance that is required for normal functioning but cannot be synthesized by the body and therefore must be included in the diet  s :absolutely required and not to be used up or sacrificed  s :of the greatest importance  s :absolutely necessary; vitally necessary   n :anything indispensable ie don't leave home without it....More important than Gummi Bears...

Why it Is essential and What does it do?:  Iron, one of the most abundant metals on Earth, is essential to most life forms and to normal human physiology. Iron is an integral part of many proteins and enzymes that maintain good health. In humans, iron is an essential component of proteins involved in oxygen transport.   It is also essential for the regulation of cell growth and differentiation .  A deficiency of iron limits oxygen delivery to cells, resulting in fatigue, poor work performance, and decreased immunity.   On the other hand, excess amounts of iron can result in toxicity and even death .  A lack of dietary iron is a  major cause, after iodine deficiency, of  stunted mental development in children.

Iron deficiency is the most common nutrient deficiency in the U.S. and the world. Three levels of iron deficiency are generally identified and are listed below from least to most severe.

Storage iron depletion: Iron stores are depleted, but the functional iron supply is not limited. 

Early functional iron deficiency: The supply of functional iron is low enough to impair red blood cell formation, but not low enough to cause measurable anemia. 

Iron deficiency anemia: There is inadequate iron to support normal red blood cell formation, resulting in anemia. The anemia of iron deficiency is characterized as microcytic and hypochromic, meaning red blood cells are measurably smaller than normal and their hemoglobin content is decreased. At this stage of iron deficiency, symptoms may be a result of inadequate oxygen delivery due to anemia and/or sub-optimal function of iron-dependent enzymes. It is important to remember that iron deficiency is not the only cause of anemia, and that the diagnosis or treatment of iron deficiency solely on the basis of anemia may lead to misdiagnosis or inappropriate treatment of the underlying cause (12).  Folic acid and Vitamin B₁₂are other nutritional causes of anemia.

Individuals at increased risk of iron deficiency

Infants and children between the ages of 6 months and 4 years: A full-term infant's iron stores are usually sufficient to last for 6 months. High iron requirements are due to the rapid growth rates sustained during this period

Adolescents: Early adolescence is another period of rapid growth. In females, the blood loss that occurs with menstruation adds to the increased iron requirement of adolescence

Pregnant women: Increased iron utilization by the developing fetus and placenta, as well as blood volume expansion significantly, increase the iron requirement during pregnancy

Individuals with chronic blood loss: Chronic bleeding or acute blood loss may result in iron deficiency. One milliliter (ml) of blood with a hemoglobin concentration of 150 grams/liter contains 0.5 mg of iron. Thus, chronic loss of very small amounts of blood may result in iron deficiency. A common cause of chronic blood loss and iron deficiency in developing countries is intestinal parasitic infection. Individuals who donate blood frequently, especially menstruating women, may need to increase their iron intake to prevent deficiency because each 500 ml of blood donated contains between 200 and 250 mg of iron

Individuals with helicobacter pylori infection: H. pylori infection is associated with iron deficiency anemia, especially in children, even in the absence of gastrointestinal bleeding.

Vegetarians: Because iron from plant sources is less efficiently absorbed than that from animal sources, the U.S. Food and Nutrition Board (FNB) has estimated that the bioavailability of iron from a vegetarian diet is only 10%, while it is 18% from a mixed diet. Therefore, the recommended dietary allowance (RDA) for iron from a completely vegetarian diet should be adjusted as follows: 14 mg/day for adult men and postmenopausal women, 33 mg/day for premenopausal women, and 26 mg/day for adolescent girls.

Individuals who engage in regular, intense exercise: Daily iron losses have been found to be greater in athletes involved in intense endurance training. This may be due to increased microscopic bleeding from the gastrointestinal tract or increased fragility and hemolysis of red blood cells. The FNB estimates that the average requirement for iron may be 30% higher for those who engage in regular intense exercise.

.What form is it best consumed? 

Heme Iron: This comes mainly from hemoglobin and myoglobin in meat, poultry, and fish. Although heme iron accounts for only 10-15% of the iron found in the diet, it may provide up to one third of total absorbed dietary iron. The absorption of heme iron is less influenced by other dietary factors than that of nonheme iron.

Non Heme Iron:  Plants, dairy products, meat, and iron salts added to foods and supplements are all sources of nonheme iron. The absorption of nonheme iron is strongly influenced by enhancers and inhibitors present in the same meal.

How much is needed?  Inside Outside Recommendation 

Iron supplements are indicated for the prevention and treatment of iron deficiency. Individuals who are not at risk of iron deficiency (e.g., adult men and postmenopausal women) should not take iron supplements without an appropriate medical evaluation for iron deficiency.  Several genetic disorders may lead to pathological accumulation of iron in the body. Hereditary hemochromatosis results in iron overload despite normal iron intake, while sub-Saharan African hemochromatosis appears to require a combination of high iron intake and a genetic predisposition. Iron overload due to prolonged iron supplementation is very rare in healthy individuals without a genetic predisposition.  Older adults should not generally take nutritional supplements containing iron unless they have been diagnosed with iron deficiency.    Although sufficient iron can be obtained through a varied diet, a considerable number of people do not consume adequate iron to prevent deficiency. A multivitamin/multimineral supplement containing 100% of the daily value (DV) for iron provides 18 mg of elemental iron. While this amount of iron may be beneficial for premenopausal women, it is well above the RDA for men and most postmenopausal women and our Life Extension Foundation product does not contain Iron.

 Dietary Supplement Fact Sheet: Iron
Office of Dietary Supplements • NIH Clinical Center • National Institutes of Health

Iron, Linus Pauling Institute's Micronutrient Information Center

 Iron Disorders Institute's (IDI) mission is to reduce pain, suffering and unnecessary death by disorders of iron through education, awareness and facilitating research.
 

NUTRIENT DATA LABORATORY

Search the USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference

 The Institute of Medicine in their Dietary Reference Intake Book and tables

Next month Iron!

METALS IN NUTRITION