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Why Am I Asked to Avoid Iron? Dear Lora, I have seen it mentioned here at Low Carb Luxury plus on several discussion boards, and on two other sites that I should be taking supplements that do NOT contain iron. But no one ever explains why. Can you fill me in? For years I believed I should be taking an iron supplement... Soni |
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Dear Soni,
Actually, both I and our "Advice Lady", got several letters recently asking this same question. So I'll take this one... Iron is a trace mineral and is essential for human health. However, the results of a myriad of studies indicate that daily supplementation of iron may do more damage than good for many adults. According to a position of the American Dietetic Association, "...additional iron commonly found in multivitamin and mineral supplements is unlikely to benefit adult men or postmenopausal women, who are at low risk of iron deficiency. On the other hand, supplemental iron is more likely to cause harm in these groups: a substantial portion of the population is heterozygous for hemochromatosis... and there are possible adverse competitive interactions with other minerals such as copper and zinc." Low Carbers' diets naturally contain a very sufficient quantity of iron. Dr. Atkins recommendation states, "Don't routinely take an iron supplement or vitamins with iron unless your physician finds you to be iron deficient. Iron can accumulate in the body and raise your risk of disease." Hope this clears it up! I have personally been taking One-A-Day Antioxidant formula softgels (they do NOT contain iron) along with my other daily supplements.  |
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What Are "Tiger Nuts"? Dear Lora, I was at a farmers' market the other day and there was a guy selling tiger nuts, which I'd never heard of before. He gave me a couple to try and they were quite tasty... kind of like chestnuts. I've since searched the internet to no avail... do you have any idea what the carb count of these are? Jessica |
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Dear Jessica,
Tiger Nuts, which are also called chufa nuts, earth almonds, and rush nuts, have a brown, bumpy skin and a sweet, chestnut-like flavor. They're popular in Spain and Latin America, where they're used to make horchata (a sweet milk substitute.) They aren't really nuts, rather they're starchy tubers that taste like chestnuts. They are a highly concentrated source of complex sugars (unfortunately for a low-carber), fats, vitamins, trace elements, peptides and amino acids. Because of that they are stocked by some sweet shoppes (especially in England.) They became popular during the war when sugar was in such short supply. As you can see, they aren't really appropriate for anyone low carbing. |
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