If you want to improve your energy level or nutritional profile, add iron-rich foods to your diet. Individuals suffering from iron deficiency, a form of anemia, may be instructed by their doctors to up their intakes of dietary iron as well. Iron exists in animal- and plant-based foods, sources the USDA considers superior to supplement pills. The FDA recommends that you get 18 mg total daily value, or DV, of iron from your diet.
Mollusks
Mollusks, or shellfish, make convenient iron-rich sources of nutrition that also provide protein. Three oz. of canned clams has 24 mg of iron, or 130 percent DV, according to the USDA Nutrient Database. These processed clams with inedible parts removed represent a mineral concentration over 3 oz. of raw, fresh clams, which have half that iron content. Similar servings of breaded and fried scallops provide 17 mg, while fried oysters contain a lower DV of about 7 mg.
Grain Foods
High content among iron-rich grain foods comes naturally and through added iron fortification. For instance, cereal manufacturers increase the iron content of wheat, corn, rice and oats to as much as 100 percent DV in some varieties. Refined wheat flour and rice may also be enriched. Naturally occurring iron equals 5 mg per 1 cup of brown rice and 6 mg per 1 cup of whole-wheat bulgur. The FDA considers these totals high content. Additional high-iron grain sources include oat bran and wild rice.
Organ Meats
While all meats and fish have some iron, the mineral is concentrated in animal organs, as the National Institutes of Health, or NIH, reports. You may not eat an entire serving of poultry giblets or pork liver, instead dispersing it in other dishes such as stuffing or sausage. One cup of turkey or chicken giblets has about 11 mg of iron, or about 60 percent DV. Two slices of braunschweiger pork sausage delivers 6 mg of iron. Three oz. of beef liver provides 5 mg of iron toward your total daily value.
Beans and Peas
Legumes include dry beans, peas, lentils and soybeans that offer high iron as well as high fiber, potassium and vitamin B content. One cup of soybeans has the most iron with 9 mg. Lentils provide 7 mg of iron, while kidney beans and chickpeas have 5 mg per 1 cup. The NIH notes that legumes also represent alternative protein sources to meats and fish.
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