by Edward F. Group III, D.C., Ph.D, N.D.,CCN

Anemia is caused by the red blood cells not carrying enough oxygen. One of the causes of anemia is iron-deficiency anemia. Unfortunately, when you aren't getting enough iron in your diet or you are losing blood – the oxygen-carrying capacity of your blood can drop suddenly. When this happens, your body becomes deprived of oxygen – leading to a breakdown of the body. If not reversed, it could very well lead to death. When you have anemia, you can feel sluggish and weak. Your brain feels fuzzy and you're always cold.

One way to help increase iron levels is by eating, and including iron-rich foods. For women who are post menopausal and all men need an average of 10 milligrams a day, in some cases up to 30 milligrams is required. Foods such as organic, pesticide and hormone free meat, fish, and poultry are good sources of iron. You'll find other iron rich foods such as a half-cup of pumpkin has 2 milligrams of iron while kidney beans and lentils have 3 milligrams in a half-cup serving. Also, when preparing a diet it is best to include vitamin supplements. Getting enough iron isn't the problem it's how we absorb the nutrients that is put into question. Our bodies absorb iron in two different ways. When you eat meat, fish, and shellfish, you are absorbing one kind of iron. The other type is found in plant foods, and is not as absorbable. Although I recommend a 90% raw vegetarian diet and 10% organic meat diet.

You eat 3 ounces of mussels. Those 3 ounces contain about 6 milligrams of iron. Of those 6 milligrams, roughly 15 percent will be absorbed by the body. Another example is with lentils, if you eat a half-cup, you are absorbing only 3 percent of the 3 milligrams of iron. It is possible to alter your body's iron absorbing ability by eating savvy. For example, pairing a food that is rich in vitamin C with a food rich in iron allows you to get more of the iron into your bloodstream. On the same note, combining meats and a fresh raw spinach salad in the same meal makes it easier to get more iron.

If you are one who has anemia, you should get a complete checkup just to make sure nothing is seriously wrong. If, after all tests, the problem is simply low iron count, that can be corrected with the right diet and supplementation program.

Other sources that are high in iron include organic meats, legumes, and vegetables. It is also recommended that you include vitamin C when you eat the other foods, this way you will be getting the most iron from your meals.

There are many ways to get Vitamin C with your meals. You can include a tomato in your salad. A tomato has 24 milligrams of vitamin C. You can also drink freshly squeezed organic orange, pineapple, or other citrus juices. If you don't like tomatoes, you can mix vitamin C with potatoes. One baked potato contains 20 milligrams of vitamin C, along with 0.6 milligrams of iron. And if you add the skin you are tripling the amount of iron you will absorb. Whatever you do, be careful.

Don't combine iron with calcium. Having calcium-rich foods in the same meal may set you back. The calcium and iron compete, but don't worry if you are taking supplements and they are together. Because they don't compete as much. The best way to deal with calcium-rich foods is to eat the iron-rich foods first and wait about an hour and eat the other. The same also goes for coffee and tea. Both beverages contain tannins, chemicals that have a mild blocking effect on iron supplements.

Another way to get iron in your body is to cook your meals in cast-iron pots. It increases iron by 2 to 5 percent. If you are really looking for a good way to get iron and start your day right, eat a half-cup of a organic Cream of Wheat. It is loaded with 5 milligrams of iron. Instant organic oatmeal also contains iron.

Of all the people in the world who get anemia, vegetarians are the most likely. The reason is due to a lack of vitamin B12 in their diet. This nutrient is needed for the cells to divide and mature properly. And it comes mostly from animal foods or supplementation. This is why vegetarians lose B12 in their diets. Because the body stores B12 and can do so for years, vegetarians may not notice any symptoms of B12 deficiency, which include fatigue and tingling in the hands and feet, for a long time. The best form of B-12 is a sublingual methylcobalamin.

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Your body can't make red blood cells without iron. Reduce the amount of iron in your diet, and you may reduce your number of red blood cells, resulting in less oxygen in your bloodstream. Below is a table with a list of foods that are rich in iron and how much you have to partake of those foods to get enough iron.

Below is a table with a list of foods that are rich in iron and how much you have to partake of those foods to get enough iron.

As long as you keep a steady healthy diet of iron-rich foods, take iron supplements and continue to watch your food intake, you'll be able to manage anemia, if you have it, or be able to prevent it from happening.