Why Do We Need Iron?

Iron is an essential nutrient has a special relationship with oxygen. It is essential for life itself, and helps support blood building and oxygen transport.* (2)

How Much Iron Should I Take?

Instead of getting the full 100% Daily Value of Iron (18mg) through vitamin supplementation, which can increase iron intake into excess levels, we recommend aiming to get some iron through the foods you eat and supplementing to help fill nutrient gaps. Iron needs may vary through different life stages. For example, during pregnancy, most women need more iron, while postmenopausal women can probably get enough through diet alone. After menopause, a woman’s need for iron is reduced quite a bit to 10 mg daily. Since most postmenopausal get more than 10 mg of iron in their diet, research shows supplemental iron may be unnecessary.* (2)

While most multivitamins with iron include the entire traditional Recommended Daily Value of iron, getting too much can be harmful. Too much iron can impact uptake of other essential trace minerals: this may mean other essential minerals cannot do their job as well. We recommend an amino acid chelate form of iron that’s well-tolerated on the stomach.*

Why Do Some Women Need More Iron?

Analyses of NHANES note that a substantial portion of pregnant women in the United States are iodine insufficient. (1) Having sufficient iron stores in the body before getting pregnant is important. Essential Prenatal Multivitamin addresses this by including 18mg of gentle chelated iron to promote energy-yielding metabolism and red blood cell formation.*

Additionally, women aged 20-49 are getting about 70% of the Recommended Daily Intake (RDA) for iron from diet alone, leaving about a 30% gap in intake. (1) This is where supplementation can come in. We included vegan-friendly iron in our Essential for Women Multivitamin 18+ because vegan women tend to have lower iron levels more commonly than those that eat meat. (2)

If there are other circumstances that you believe might call for a higher iron intake, we recommend checking in with your physician.

How Much Iron Do Men Need?

Men are probably getting enough iron through diet alone. Adult men ages 19-50 years old have a RDV of 8mg which is significantly smaller than adult women and pregnant women. (2) It's pretty self-explanatory—because men have slightly lower iron needs than women, they can probably meet their daily values through the foods they eat.*

Ritual’s Form of Iron

Ritual chose Albion Minerals Ferrochel® (ferrous bisglycinate chelate). Ferrochel has been used around the world for decades, and has been shown to be a more tolerable form of iron. Ferrochel® is produced by TRAACs® patented method, and fits our other requirements of being vegetarian, non-GMO and generally recognized as safe (GRAS). As always, we believe in a food-first philosophy but Essential for Women Multivitamin 18+ and Essential Prenatal Multivitamin are here to support meeting our daily iron needs.*

Ferrochel® is a registered trademark of Albion Laboratories, Inc.

Resources:

1. USDA, Agricultural Research Service. Nutrient Intakes from Food and Beverages: Mean Amounts Consumed per Individual, by Gender and Age, What We Eat in America, NHANES 2015-2016. 2018.

2. Office of Dietary Supplements. Iron: Fact sheet for Health Professionals. National Institutes of Health,Department of Health & Human Services, 2018.