Every supplement has different quantities of iron in its contents, so it is important to find out which iron supplement one must use. In the form of a supplement, Iron comes as an individual supplement or is mixed with other forms of minerals and vitamins. Iron supplements are certainly required for people with certain health condition such as anemia but also aids in rectifying many other health-issues.
Iron as a dietary supplement exists as two types: Heme iron and Non-Heme iron. Heme iron is obtained from animal food where as Non-Heme iron is obtained from plant species. If one is unable to meet the suggested daily intake of iron from their diet alone, it is suggested to intake iron supplements to prevent any deficiency in nutrients. Consumption of a source of vitamin C along with an iron supplement helps enhance iron absorption.
Iron is available as various types of dietary supplements. Multivitamin supplements are also combined with iron; especially those intended for women provide about 18 mg of iron. Multivitamin supplements intended for men or seniors normally contain little or no iron.
Generally, the iron supplements include ferrous and ferric iron salts like ferrous sulfate and ferric citrate. Because of the higher solubility, ferrous iron as a supplement is more bio-available than ferric iron. The various other forms of supplemental iron are heme iron polypeptides, carbonyl iron and iron amino-acid chelates. The different forms of supplements consist of varied amounts of elemental iron. Ferrous sulfate has 20% and ferrous gluconate has 12% elemental iron. About 14% to 18% of Americans use iron supplement along with their diet.
The rates of use of iron supplements vary by age and gender.