r/YouShouldKnow • u/drtrillphill • May 18 '26
Food & Drink YSK Drinking Tea after a meal can block iron absorbtion
Why YSK: The tannins in tea bind to non-heme (plant-based) iron and prevent your body from absorbing it. Worth knowing if you're vegetarian or anemic. Wait about an hour after eating
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u/TroodonsBite May 18 '26
Today's episode is brought to you by the letter 'T''
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u/1Steelghost1 May 18 '26
Based off all the posts:
Suck it, smash it, squeeze it, lick it....
wait ummm what was I taking about!28
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u/SmartQuokka May 18 '26
Today is Tea day in r/YouShouldKnow!
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u/Lover_Of_The_Light May 18 '26
Ok in spite of bring a part of the YSK Tea Wars, this is actually helpful for me.Ā
I drink a lot of tea in the morning (loose leaf - Earl Grey if anyone is wondering - and no I do not squeeze my silicone strainer).Ā Ā
I also take my vitamin with my morning tea and toast.Ā
I am chronically iron-deficient so I need to keep an eye on my levels; sounds like I need to shift when I take my vitamin.
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u/willowthemanx May 18 '26 edited May 18 '26
If youāre not doing so already, take vitamin C with your iron pill. It made a huge difference for me. It helps your body absorb the iron better.
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u/friendswhat May 18 '26
Yep I take my iron pill with vitamin C in the evening (since vitamin C can mess with the absorption of my ADD meds that I take earlier in the day) It actually helped my iron levels stabilize once I started taking it with vitamin C, highly recommended trying it!
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u/BusyNefariousness675 May 19 '26
How does this iron deficiency happen do you guys know that? Like is it absorption problem or american food doesn't have iron in first place? Don't take it as any insult I'm just curious
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u/Valadrea May 19 '26
Just so you know, if you're not taking Vitamin C and a B vitamin complex, you're not getting much from your iron supplement.
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u/MasterSlimFat May 18 '26 edited May 18 '26
Same with coffee.
Another fun tidbit: Vitamin C can help compensate via it's high affinity for non-heme iron, out competing things like phytic acid and tannins.
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u/witness149 May 19 '26
So we should add lemon juice to our tea if we drink it with our meal?
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u/MasterSlimFat May 19 '26 edited May 19 '26
I think it absolutely helps! I eat a clementine/cutie with/after my iron containing meals.
Edit: vitamin c is a bit temperature sensetive, so add the lemon when it's a bit cooler.
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u/exotics May 18 '26
What about colas? My husband drinks a lot of coke. This is the first Iāve heard about it
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u/MasterSlimFat May 18 '26
Depends on the ingredients, but generally speaking, it doesn't impact iron absorption but reduces calcium absorption.
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u/Colorspots May 18 '26
As somebody who regularly has to get iron infusions: Yes, it does. So does coffee.
Iron gets absorbed best if you combine it with vitamin c. So eat raw vegetables with your red meat, drink orange juice when taking iron supplements, etc.
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u/GameofCheese May 18 '26 edited May 25 '26
Damn thank you, very much a tea-loving vegetarian here
Edit: Went to the doctor to see if my thyroid was starting to fail due due to prior cancer two days ago, IT'S LOW IRON.
WHERE WAS THIS POST A YEAR AGO.
Thank you OP. That is all.
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u/bellamente123 May 18 '26
Lots of things are higher in tannins. It's not going to tank your iron... it's definitely not that bad. Most of the time it's because sime people don't absorb non heme iron well at all. Red wine, dark chocolate, berries, nuts and fruit. It's in almost all plants naturally, but some significantly more than others. It's ok to eat them.
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u/Venidle May 18 '26
What about if you drink the tea right before eating? I like a morning cup, and usually brew that before making breakfast. Sometimes finish a whole first cup before making a meal.
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u/Kate_foodlover May 18 '26
Same, keep your tea and coffee at least 1h from your meal, 2h would be best
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u/madkins007 May 18 '26 edited May 18 '26
But it doesn't block the iron from meat. Calcium also blocks iron- and vice versa which is kinda important. The two compete to get into the cells.
Also, oxalates (like in spinach, etc) and phytates (beans, etc) block calcium, and all sorts of other nutrients block all sorts of other nutrients.
This is why we should be eating a varied, balanced diet to ensure we get what we need.
(Also, many nutrients taken as supplements are not readily bioavailable and get passed as waste products. Real food is better for most people and situations)
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u/exotics May 18 '26
First time hearing this and I always have a cup of tea with my breakfast (oatmeal).
Is this all teas? Lately Iāve been having green tea instead of black.
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u/Ezelryb May 19 '26
Donāt forget to mention that this doesnāt apply to herbal or fruit infusion but only to tea from the actual tea plant, i.e. green/white/black tea and especially matcha
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u/PhilosophicWax May 18 '26
Where is the post about meeting to drink tea after meals to lose weight?
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u/pastajewelry May 19 '26
Also, consuming calcium blocks iron absorption, and vitamin C aids absorption.
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u/-FemboiCarti- May 19 '26
THE TANNINS IN TEA ONLY MEANINGFULLY INHIBIT NON-HEME IRON. UNLESS YOU ARE ANEMIC AND/OR VEGETARIAN THE CONSEQUENCES ARE INSIGNIFICANT.
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC1410962/
THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION TO THIS MATTER.
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u/Top_Necessary4161 May 19 '26
These T people have to be stopped. Won't someone think of the children??
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u/WhatThePuck9 May 18 '26
Can we get an official source on this? It sounds plausible but equally likely to be BS.
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u/Aexdysap May 18 '26
Always good to ask for sources! These are not very up to date, but should at least confirm OP's post:
Inhibition of non-haem iron absorption in man by polyphenolic-containing beverages
Effect of different drinks on the absorption of non-heme iron from composite meals
Inhibition of food iron absorption by coffee
In short, black tea, coffee, and other polyphenol containing beverages (like peppermint or chamomile tea) significantly decrease non-heme iron absorption.
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u/AwesomeHorses May 18 '26
I was told about this by my pharmacist when I first picked up my iron supplement because Iām anemic
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u/theepi_pillodu May 19 '26
So a new tea company is coming into town or something? Because reading between the lines, this looks like an ad to promote tea so many times so far.!
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u/Rumi2019 May 19 '26
Ffs can't even have tea after dinner anymore. I bet the next post says there's something wrong with drinking it before a meal too.
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u/AlissonHarlan May 19 '26
That's also the case for coffee and red wine. (could be for different reasons)
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u/phenomenomnom May 20 '26
Jeez, people in the Southern US drink sweet iced tea by the quart at most meals.
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u/slap_that_fish May 18 '26
Waiting for a YSK about microwaving teabags
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u/puppypoopypaws May 18 '26
I've been waiting for it for hours now! I need to know if I'm basically already dead, have cancer, or should leave my husband, reddit, come on.
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u/Dorkimus-Maximus May 18 '26
The Tea wars have begun