The Best Liquid Iron Supplements

Choosing a liquid iron supplement is a good way to improve anemia symptoms.

When an iron supplement comes in a liquid form, it’s better absorbed, and it may be able to reverse anemia more effectively than other types of iron.

Below, we cover everything you should know about choosing an iron supplement that’s a liquid.

Who Needs Iron Supplements?

Iron plays many key bodily roles, including helping you stay energetic. It’s common to have low iron levels, leading to symptoms including tiredness, a lack of concentration, and frequent illnesses.

If someone has low levels of iron and they don’t receive effective treatment, it can contribute to iron deficiency anemia.

Iron deficiency anemia occurs when the blood doesn’t have enough red blood cells that carry oxygen.

The symptoms of iron deficiency anemia include:

• Fatigue
• Low energy
• Shortness of breath
• Problems concentration
• Struggles to regulate body temperature
• Pale skin
• Headaches
• Hearing ringing or hissing sounds
• Itchiness
• Changes in how food tastes
• Hair loss
• Sores in the corners of the mouth
• Nails that are shaped like spoons
• Heart palpitations
• Restless leg syndrome (uncontrollable urges to move your legs)

Taking an iron supplement can help treat low iron or iron deficiency anemia.

You might need a supplement containing iron if you’re in one of the following groups:

• You have heavy periods
• You’re pregnant
• You’re a frequent blood donor
• You have cancer
• You have gastrointestinal disorders or have undergone gastric surgery
• Someone with heart failure
• A person taking medicine that depletes iron levels (e.g., medicines that reduce stomach acid)
• You engage in heavy exercise regularly
• You eat a vegan or vegetarian diet
• You’re someone with a blood disorder
• People with alcoholism

If you believe you have iron deficiency anemia but haven’t been officially diagnosed, it’s important to talk to your healthcare provider before taking a supplement.

Too much iron can cause serious health problems, including digestive issues and reduced nutrient absorption in the gut. You might also experience cell damage if you take an iron supplement you don’t need.

Types of Iron

Iron is a mineral that helps maintain healthy blood. Iron is a key component of hemoglobin—a protein in your red blood cells that carries oxygen from your lungs to the rest of your body.

When you get iron from your food, there are two forms.

There is heme iron found in animal foods like meat and seafood.

Then, there’s non-heme iron found in plant foods such as leafy greens and whole grains. Non-heme iron is also found in animal-based foods.

The iron in your body is stored as ferritin. It’s stored in the liver, spleen, muscle tissues, and bone marrow.

Then, it’s delivered throughout your body by transferrin, a protein in your blood that binds to iron.

The body better absorbs heme iron than non-heme iron, and vitamin C can improve absorption.

Factors Affecting Iron Absorption

Iron absorption is controlled primarily by absorption in the intestines.

As a result, any iron you’re consuming must be bioavailable.

There are interactions between nutrients that can impair the absorption of iron in the intestines.

For example, calcium, polyphenols, and phytates are all inhibitors of iron absorption, while vitamin C enhances its absorption.

If you’re taking a supplement in pill form, signs it’s not working include fatigue, pale skin, shortness of breath, and headaches.

Iron is best absorbed when you have an empty stomach, but doing it this way could cause you to feel nauseous or cause stomach upset. Therefore, having some food in your stomach can be beneficial, but depending on your consumption, you might be making your supplements less effective.

For example, calcium and antacids, high-fiber foods such as raw vegetables and whole grains, and caffeine are all things that can negatively affect your body’s ability to absorb supplemental iron as well as iron from food.