The short answer
No. One portion of tomato paste (2 tbsp) gives about 0.9 mg of iron, 5% 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.
- mg0.9In one portion: 2 tbsp
- %5Of the 18 mg a day women aged 19 to 50 need
- mg3Per 100 g, as eaten
How it compares
Iron per portion, next to other foods on the vegetables shelf.
What helps its iron in
A vitamin C helper
Its vitamin C lets in more plant iron from the whole plate.
Cook JD, Monsen ER (1977), Am J Clin Nutr. 25 mg of vitamin C with a meal raised its iron absorption 1.65 times, and 1,000 mg almost 10 times. With meat in the meal, the rise was smaller.Colour
Its carotenoids helped iron in from grain meals in one lab's trials. A later trial of vitamin A found no gain.
García-Casal MN, et al. (1998), J Nutr. Beta-carotene more than tripled iron absorption from a rice meal and raised it 1.8 times from wheat and corn, offsetting phytate.
Recipes with tomato paste
All recipes
Questions
How much iron is in tomato paste?
About 3 mg per 100 g, so 2 tbsp (30 g) gives about 0.9 mg. The number is from USDA FoodData Central: Tomato products, canned, paste, without salt added (Includes foods for USDA's Food Distribution Program).
Is the iron in tomato paste 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.
Does tomato paste 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
- USDA FoodData Central: Tomato products, canned, paste, without salt added (Includes foods for USDA's Food Distribution Program)
- Cook JD, Monsen ER. Vitamin C, the common cold, and iron absorption. Am J Clin Nutr, 1977
- Ballot D, et al.. The effects of fruit juices and fruits on the absorption of iron from a rice meal. Br J Nutr, 1987
- Rossander L, Hallberg L, Björn-Rasmussen E. Absorption of iron from breakfast meals. Am J Clin Nutr, 1979
- García-Casal MN, et al.. Vitamin A and beta-carotene can improve nonheme iron absorption from rice, wheat and corn by humans. J Nutr, 1998
- Walczyk T, et al.. No enhancing effect of vitamin A on iron absorption in humans. Am J Clin Nutr, 2003
- NIH Office of Dietary Supplements. Iron: fact sheet for health professionals
- 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.