Skip to content
Language: en
Join

Are blackcurrants high in iron?

1.2mg iron in half a cup

1.5 mg per 100 g

  • Low in iron
  • Non-heme iron

The short answer

No. One portion of blackcurrants (half a cup) gives about 1.2 mg of iron, 7% of the 18 mg a day women aged 19 to 50 need. It is non-heme iron, and its own vitamin C helps it in, along with the plant iron from the rest of the plate.

  • mg1.2In one portion: half a cup
  • %7Of the 18 mg a day women aged 19 to 50 need
  • mg1.5Per 100 g, as eaten

How it compares

Iron per portion, next to other foods on the fruit shelf.

  1. Blackcurrants1.2 mg
  2. Strawberries0.6 mg
  3. Avocado0.5 mg
  4. Kiwi0.2 mg
  5. Blueberries0.2 mg
  6. Pomegranate0.1 mg
  7. Orange0.1 mg
  8. Grapefruit0.1 mg
  9. Lemon juice0 mg
  10. Sea buckthorn0 mg

What helps its iron in

Recipes with blackcurrants

All recipes

Questions

How much iron is in blackcurrants?

About 1.5 mg per 100 g, so half a cup (80 g) gives about 1.2 mg. The number is from USDA FoodData Central: Currants, european black, raw.

Is the iron in blackcurrants easy to absorb?

Less easily than iron from meat or fish, though its own vitamin C helps. Coffee, tea and dairy near the meal hold it back.

Do blackcurrants help iron absorption?

Yes. Its vitamin C helps the plant iron from the rest of the plate in. It works in the same meal, not hours apart.

Sources

  1. USDA FoodData Central: Currants, european black, raw
  2. Cook JD, Monsen ER. Vitamin C, the common cold, and iron absorption. Am J Clin Nutr, 1977
  3. Ballot D, et al.. The effects of fruit juices and fruits on the absorption of iron from a rice meal. Br J Nutr, 1987
  4. Rossander L, Hallberg L, Björn-Rasmussen E. Absorption of iron from breakfast meals. Am J Clin Nutr, 1979
  5. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements. Iron: fact sheet for health professionals
  6. US Code of Federal Regulations, 21 CFR 101.54: nutrient content claims for "good source" and "high"

Iron is from food tables, for the food as eaten, and real foods vary with the cut, the brand and the recipe. Your body takes in a share of it, and a larger share when your stores are low.

Educational, not medical advice. ferritin.ai does not diagnose or treat any condition. Talk to your doctor about your own results.