Reassessing My Diet

First of all I want to thank you for all your kind words of encouragement for my half marathon at the weekend. They brought a smile to my face and made me even more excited about the race I know that I can do it, but reading your comments has helped me to overcome my last minute jitters.

A couple a weeks ago I wrote a post called Operation Energise about how I’ve been really lacking in energy lately and I put together a bit of a plan to try at get some of my old sparkle back. I’ve been mostly sticking to the plan, apart from the odd late night here and there, but I still haven’t felt great. For the past few months I’ve also been having blackouts or “head rushes” frequently when I stand up – not like I’m going to faint, I just take a few moments to get used to being upright. When I went to the doctor about the eczema on my legs I mentioned the blackouts to her, so she booked me in for some blood tests.

It turns out I have iron-deficiency anaemia, so no wonder I’ve been so lethargic! Iron-deficiency anaemia occurs when there is a reduced number of red blood cells because the body does not have enough iron to produce them (NHS Choices). With hindsight I’ve been suffering with many of the common symptoms of anaemia for a few months: tiredness, difficulty concentrating (big time!!), palpitations, dizziness and tinnitus. Typically people with anaemia become very pale, but no-one would have noticed the difference because I am translucent at the best of times. It also explains why I’ve been struggling with recovery after long or difficult runs.

I’ve been prescribed iron supplements and I will need to be monitored to check my levels are going back to normal. The prescribing nurse also wrote on my prescription “eat more red meat and green leafy vegetables”. My first reaction was that I already practically eat my weight in green leafy vegetables, but I’ve done a bit more research and realise perhaps I have been lacking in iron. Nowadays my main green leafy veg source is spinach and it might actually be difficult for the body to absorb the iron from spinach.

Also, there’s the red meat thing. I don’t talk too much about my diet on the blog because I don’t think it’s necessary, for me personally, to define myself as eating in a particular way. I’m not vegetarian or vegan, but if pushed I will normally say that I don’t eat much meat. I eat meat or fish about once or twice a week and I eat red meat even more occasionally. Over the past year I’ve probably only eaten red meat a handful of times. This is because it’s expensive to buy, I’m concerned about the saturated fat content, and I don’t particularly enjoy it. However, the iron found in red meat is easier for the body to absorb that the iron found in vegetarian sources. At the moment I’m torn about whether to introduce more red meat into my diet, but I think for now I’m going to concentrate on eating as many vegetarian iron-rich foods as I can.

I made a good start yesterday with rice cakes: two topped with blackstrap molasses and tahini and one topped with red pepper hummus, with some dried apricots on the side. Sorry for the bad photo – my good camera died.

Molasses, chickpeas and dried fruit are all good sources of iron.

Dinner was a mushroom and courgette omelette, served with pak choi fried with sesame oil, soy sauce and chilli powder.

As well as being the most delicious thing I’ve eaten all week, the pak choi ticked the green leafy vegetable box. I’m going to branch out when it comes to vegetables and try to eat more broccoli, brussel sprouts, kale and cabbage.

I’m also on vitamin C mission because it helps the body to absorb iron. I’ve stocked up on oranges, lemons, orange juice, kiwis and sweet potatoes.

I’m really interested, have you ever had a vitamin or mineral deficiency and how have you changed your diet to overcome it?

Where do you stand on the red met vs. vegetarian sources of iron?

Have you got any suggestions for iron-rich meals?

Disclaimer: I am not a nutritionist and what I have written in this post is based on my own research from reputable sources. If you think you have a nutritional deficiency seek advice from a health professional.