Benefits for People Suffering from Iron Deficiency

Iron insufficiency is one of the world's most prevalent nutritional deficits and a significant cause of anemia, a disorder defined by insufficient quantities of healthy red blood cells. Symptoms of anemia and low iron levels include dizziness, weakness, and exhaustion, but anemia can also cause loss of appetite, brittle nails, and hair loss.

If you have low iron levels, your doctor or nutritionist may advise you to treat them with dietary supplements, iron-rich meals like red meat, or a mix of supplements and foods. You may also be advised to take your iron with orange juice, as vitamin C aids iron absorption in the digestive tract. Cabbage is not a very high-iron source, but because it is strong in vitamin C, it can help your body absorb more iron from other meals. Furthermore, cabbage does not contain large levels of phytates or other substances known to inhibit iron absorption. In fact, in research evaluating iron bioavailability from several plant-based diets, sauerkraut (fermented cabbage) came in first while plain cabbage came in third.