Thal Minor and Iron Rich Foods

Hi, I have been doing alot of reading about thal and I am woundering do thal Minor's have to avoid or be careful when eating iron rich foods like read meat and spinich or does that only effect thal Majors? Anyone know?
-Priscilla

Iron absorption in the gut seems to have a relationship to the hemoglobin (Hb) level. The lower the Hb, the more that iron will be absorbed by the gut. It is believed that when the Hb drops and the bone marrow tries to produce more red blood cells, that the gut will absorb more iron to feed the iron demand of the Hb in the new red cells.

From  http://www.hawaii.edu/medicine/pediatrics/pedtext/s11c02.html

In any anemic state, there is increased gut absorption of iron.

I don't think iron overload is a common problem in minors though and minors are not normally prescribed a low-iron diet. If you are concerned you might try drinking tea with meals, as it reduces the amount of iron absorbed from food. Citrus should be avoided with meals as it can increase the amount of iron absorbed.

I would definitely NOT have or make my spinach tangerine salads anymore 
I didn't know much about thalassemia before but now I'm use to read labels even on simple things like bread and trying to feed my family as simple as possible.
One thing I noticed ,I use to suffer much last  symptoms of thalassemia when I use to live in Rio Brazil.
There I use to live at sea level ,I didn't consumed vegetarian fast foods,or commercialized things.it was pretty much everything from scratch. Plus the weather was warmer.
Once I moved to Oregon,s high altitude valleys ,I started to eat canned foods and microwave stuff that I have never consumed before I started to deal with allergies . It doesn't matter if was vegetarian food or not all have traces of whey ,iron,peanuts,things that I could avoid before plus here on this site I have seen that not all thal pals do good on altitude or cold weather and yes now I need to deal with the winter chills also.

i know they say thal minors should eat a balanced diet and have no need to worry about iron in their food...

but i still wonder whether too much or too little iron is good or bad for them....


i ask because i have a special liking for beef, apples, lemons and black tea... all of which have repercussions on iron absorption...

though i eat and have all of them whenever i have their cravings, i feel i should really know more about my diet options, as these may (or may not) be risky...

Thal minors seldom have problems with excess iron, as the Hb in minors is usually high enough so that excess iron absorption does not occur. Eat healthy foods and don't worry about iron content. Avoid junk foods as much as possible.

Thanks Andy!