Iron and vitamin C are important elements needed by the body for a variety of reasons. Although most people probably get enough vitamin C, many children and people of childbearing age are at risk of not getting enough iron.
Iron helps prevent anemia, a condition in which there is a lack of healthy red blood cells. Without iron, the body cannot produce hemoglobin, the protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen around the body. This can cause fatigue and other symptoms.
The benefits of vitamin C include improved absorption of iron, especially non-heme iron found in plant foods. Therefore, people with anemia due to iron deficiency may benefit from taking vitamin C.
Although vitamin C supplements rarely cause side effects or complications, most people do not take over-the-counter (OTC) iron supplements unless they are at risk of deficiency or cannot get enough vitamin C through diet alone. Not required. Always consult your health care provider before trying larger doses, especially if you are taking any medications.
Iron plays an important role in body growth and brain development, so severe iron deficiency can lead to complications. It also helps synthesize some hormones and supports the immune system. Complications can be especially problematic for children with severe iron deficiency.
Most people do not have severe iron deficiency. In this case, iron deficiency is most likely to cause anemia, whether due to blood loss, not getting enough iron in the diet, or both.
If you have anemia due to iron deficiency, you may benefit from extra iron intake. You can work with your health care provider to check your iron levels with a blood test and get advice on how much iron to take.
For people who don’t get enough iron in their diet, getting iron from a daily multivitamin may also help prevent anemia.
Vitamin C has many important health benefits. It helps produce the structural protein collagen, synthesizes certain hormones, regulates some genes, supports parts of the immune system, and protects cells from damage as an antioxidant.
Severe vitamin C deficiency causes scurvy, a serious condition that can cause symptoms such as excessive bleeding and brittle bones. Most people get enough vitamin C in their diet to prevent scurvy.
Consuming large amounts of vitamin C may provide the following benefits:
- Improve immune health: Vitamin C helps regulate parts of your immune system. Some studies show that taking vitamin C may help shorten the duration of a cold, but it’s not clear whether it’s beneficial.
- Reduces risk of cardiovascular disease. Consuming large amounts of fruits and vegetables rich in vitamin C reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease. However, research has not shown that vitamin C helps prevent complications such as cardiovascular disease and heart attacks.
- Preventing the progression of age-related macular degeneration: Taking vitamin C along with other antioxidants, such as vitamin E, may help prevent the progression of age-related macular degeneration, a progressive eye disease that causes blurred vision in the center.
Scientists are also interested in vitamin C’s role in potential cancer treatment when taken in high doses. However, this is only useful if very high doses are taken intravenously (through a needle inserted into a vein).
The main potential benefit of taking iron and vitamin C together is that vitamin C promotes the absorption of non-ferrous iron, the type found in plant foods such as spinach. This may be especially important for people who get most of their iron from sources other than meat. Non-heme iron is not absorbed as well as heme iron found in animal foods. Therefore, some people, especially those who menstruate regularly, may find it difficult to get enough iron from their diet.
Taking vitamin C with iron may be more effective in treating iron deficiency anemia than taking iron alone. However, a recent randomized trial of more than 400 people found that taking vitamin C with iron was no more effective than taking iron alone.
If you don’t get enough vitamin C or iron from your diet alone, some people may benefit from taking both. For example, this is true for people with medical conditions that affect the absorption of nutrients.
Iron and vitamin C are most often taken as tablets, but may also be available in other forms, such as powder. You can take these as individual products, but there are also formulations that combine multiple products. Some multivitamins also contain iron and vitamin C, usually in low doses.
If you are not taking iron and vitamin C in the same product, it may be a good idea to take them at the same time. This helps increase iron absorption. Some people prefer to take iron after a small meal, as it may reduce the risk of an upset stomach.
When you take iron and vitamin C to treat anemia, it may take several weeks or more to see improvement.
Dose
The ideal intake for taking iron and vitamin C together is unknown. Some products are formulated with 20 milligrams (mg) of iron and 200 mg of vitamin C. Other products contain much higher doses of iron and may not be safe for everyone.
People who menstruate lose blood and iron, so they need to get more iron through their diet and supplements. For example, the Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDA) for iron, including food sources and supplements, are:
- 8mg after menopause
- 18 mg if menstruating (under 51 years)
- 27mg daily during pregnancy
Many over-the-counter (OTC) supplements containing iron contain doses that are higher than the RDA for most people. Some multivitamins may contain more iron than the ideal amount. Still, people who get most of their iron from non-animal foods may need more iron. Therefore, taking vitamin C along with iron may be beneficial.
For vitamin C, the RDA is 75 to 90 mg, but pregnant and breastfeeding people need slightly higher amounts. Smoking can deplete vitamin C levels, so a smoker’s RDA is 35 mg higher.
If you don’t get enough iron and vitamin C from your diet, taking both together is usually safe for most people. However, it’s best to work with your health care provider to ensure that taking supplements is the best choice, especially for iron. Because iron toxicity is a risk, you should avoid taking more than necessary based on factors such as age, gender, diet, and other medical conditions.
People with blood disorders such as sickle cell disease or who are prone to kidney stones should use vitamin C with caution. People with medical conditions that can lead to iron overload, such as hemochromatosis, should not take extra iron.
When purchasing OTC supplements, check the label for third-party testing, such as USP or NSF. This ensures product safety and high quality.
Potential drug interactions
Both iron and vitamin C can interact with certain medications, reducing their effectiveness or increasing the risk of side effects.
For example, if you are taking statin drugs such as Zocor (simvastatin) to lower your cholesterol, you may not want to take extra vitamin C because it may make these drugs less effective.
Vitamin C may also interact with cancer treatments such as radiation and chemotherapy. Although the data are not clear, there is some evidence that vitamin C may make these treatments work less well. Always talk to your oncologist (a doctor who specializes in cancer treatment) about vitamin C supplementation, especially if you are taking or plan to take high doses.
Iron can interact with many drugs. If you are taking any of the following, ask your healthcare provider or pharmacist if they are safe to use.
- Parkinson’s disease drugs containing levodopa (such as Sinemet)
- Levothyroxine, for hypothyroidism (hypothyroidism)
- Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) such as Prilosec (omeprazole) for acid reflux
- Certain antibiotics such as Sumycin (tetracycline) and Cipro (ciprofloxacin)
These medications may need to be taken at different times than iron supplements.
Although many people already get enough iron in their diet, it is possible to consume too much iron because the body cannot easily remove excess iron. In contrast, it is difficult to consume too much vitamin C, as it is efficiently removed from the body if taken in excess of what is needed.
For example, if a child accidentally ingests too much iron, he or she can die from an iron overdose. Taking too much iron at once or for a longer period of time than necessary can lead to an overdose. Iron toxicity can also cause symptoms such as liver damage, joint pain, and fatigue.
The government recommendation is to consume less than 45 mg of iron per day from food and supplements. If you are deficient, you may need to temporarily take a higher dose.
It is unknown whether taking iron with vitamin C changes side effects. However, high doses of vitamin C can cause diarrhea and bloating. Very high doses can cause symptoms such as headache, flushing, and nausea. High doses also increase the risk of kidney stones.
Iron is known to cause symptoms such as nausea, abdominal pain, constipation, and nausea. If you take higher doses, you are more likely to experience these side effects.
Taking vitamin C with iron can increase the absorption of iron, especially non-heme iron from plant sources. For this reason, some people use them together to treat or prevent anemia. Not sure if this helps. However, most people who need additional iron can safely take it with appropriate doses of vitamin C.
