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Do you remember your parents telling you to eat foods that contain iron so that you'd grow up to be big and strong? Didn't Popeye down his can of spinach and instantly turn into California's governor? How about multivitamins, don't you make sure they include iron?

Well You've Been Wrong!

Yes, our blood needs iron to carry oxygen to the cells and our muscles require oxygen to contract, but many of us have too much. Iron speeds up the aging process. Think about it'what causes rusting? IRON and oxygen! And I'm not being figurative when I tell you that excess iron causes rusting in our body.

When we have too much iron, it's oxidized just like the metal on your old bicycle wheels. This internal 'rust' has been proven to accelerate aging. It leads to:

Osteoporosis
Spinal Fractures
Alzheimer's Disease
Decreased Kidney Function
Elevated LDL (Bad Cholesterol)
High Blood Pressure (Hypertension)
Heart Attacks
Strokes
Macular Degeneration (the most common cause of blindness)

Popeye Wasn't Completely Wrong

Kids and menstruating women use more iron than most of us and may require supplementation, but ask us first. A simple blood test will give you the answer. If we're deficient in iron, adults will feel tired and kids will not grow and develop properly. Talk to us, we can tell by asking a few questions and possibly sending you to the lab for a blood test.

Otherwise'stop taking iron. Look in your multivitamin and see if it's there. If it is, many of us should get rid of it. Check the foods you're eating. Try to avoid those that add iron to their ingredients (usually as ferrous sulphate, ferrous oxide or ferrous fumerate). It's O.K. if it comes in foods naturally, but not when it's added as a supplement.

This information is fairly new. Yet, the evidence is now clear and indisputable. Most of us, especially those of us with the best diets, are increasing our rate of aging by swallowing too much iron.

It seems that science is quite fickle. But, those who follow the best scientific knowledge live the longest. So'..stay informed. This information on iron agrees with our knowledge about most supplements'more is not always better. Yet, too little is not healthy either.

We're looking for a good, healthy balance. That advice will never be proven wrong.

When you come in to see the doctors, discuss your iron levels with them. This is a simple thing that you can do to prevent needless aging and future disease.