Iron for Vegan Toddlers

by Reed Mangels, PhD, RD

Young children, regardless of their diet, are at risk for iron deficiency according to the U.S. National Institutes of Health (1). Almost a quarter of children age 1 to 2 years in the United States have iron deficiency (defined as serum ferritin <15μg/L) (2). Between 0.9% and 4.4% of U.S. toddlers age 1 to 3 years have iron deficiency anemia (defined for children aged 12 through 35 months as a hemoglobin concentration of less than 11.0 g/dL) (3).

The RDA (Recommended Dietary Allowance) for iron for 1 to 3 year olds is 1.3 milligrams of iron daily. If we increase that by 1.8 times, as is recommended for vegetarians including vegans, we get an RDA of 2.3 milligrams of iron for vegan toddlers (4).

How might vegan toddlers get some extra iron? Here are some ideas, in toddler-friendly form:

1. Snack on shelled edamame or mix edamame with pasta, steamed vegetables, or rice. A toddler-size quarter cup serving provides 0.9 milligrams of iron, almost 40% of the RDA for vegan toddlers.
2. Cube firm tofu and steam, roast, or sauté, adding sauce or catsup or other condiments to your toddler’s liking. A quarter cup of firm tofu cubes has 1.75 milligrams of iron, more than half the RDA for vegan toddlers.
3. Add iron-fortified baby cereal and/or wheat germ to the batter for muffins, pancakes, waffles, and other bready finger foods. Just 2 tablespoons of iron-fortified baby cereal contain 3.4 milligrams of iron. Two tablespoons of wheat germ have 1.4 milligrams of iron.
4. Check the label of the bread that you buy. Bread made with 100% whole wheat flour or with iron-enriched flour can provide 0.5 milligrams or more or iron per slice.
5. If your toddler likes toast, try topping it with a thin spread of tahini or of hummus made with tahini. A teaspoon of tahini has 0.35 milligrams of iron, about 15% of the RDA for a vegan toddler.
6. Make a thick lentil pate like this one which has more than 1 milligram of iron in 1/12 of the recipe. Toddlers may like to dip crackers or sliced vegetables or fruit in the pate, eat it on bread or crackers, or eat it by the spoonful.
7. Serve an iron-fortified breakfast cereal for breakfast or a snack. Trader Joe’s O’s (more than 1 milligram of iron per ¼ cup serving), is one example of a toddler-friendly cereal that is fortified with iron and not with non-vegan vitamin D.
8. Make bean burgers, a fun finger food, either cut in pieces or made into small burgers. One-sixth of this Garbanzo Bean Burger recipe supplies around 1.3 milligrams of iron, more than half the RDA for vegan toddlers.
9. Add raisins to breakfast cereal and baked goods. A couple of tablespoons of raisins adds around 0.4 milligrams of iron, about 17% of the RDA for vegan toddlers.
10. Promote iron absorption from plant foods by including a source of vitamin C at meals and snacks. Blueberries, strawberries, mango slices, orange sections, cantaloupe chunks are fruit sources of vitamin C. Vegetable sources include tomatoes and tomato sauce, broccoli, cabbage, and bell peppers.

Some toddlers may need an iron supplement. Always discuss supplement use with your child’s health care provider before starting a supplement.

And, keep in mind that in non-vegan toddlers in the United States, beef contributed 2% of their total iron intake (5). Iron-fortified breakfast cereals, baby cereals, and bread products were the main contributors of iron for non-vegan 1 to 2 year olds in the United States (6).

References

1. National Institutes of Health. Office of Dietary Supplements. Iron – Health Professionals. https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Iron-HealthProfessional/#h9. 2025.
2. National Center for Health Statistics. Anemia or Iron Deficiency. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/anemia.htm. 2026.
3. Baker RD, Greer FR. Diagnosis and prevention of iron deficiency and iron-deficiency anemia in infants and young children (0-3 years of age). Pediatrics 2010;126:1040-50.
4. Institute of Medicine, Food and Nutrition Board. Dietary Reference Intakes for Vitamin A, Vitamin K, Arsenic, Boron, Chromium, Copper, Iodine, Iron, Manganese, Molybdenum, Nickel, Silicon, Vanadium, and Zinc. Washington, DC: National Academy Press, 2001.
5. Finn K, Callen C, Bhatia J, et al. Importance of dietary sources of iron in infants and toddlers: Lessons from the FITS Study. Nutrients. 2017;9:733.
6. Fox MK, Reidy K, Novak T, et al. Sources of energy and nutrients in the diets of infants and toddlers. J Am Diet Assoc. 2006;106(1 Suppl 1):S28-S42.

To read more about iron in the vegan diet see:

Iron in the Vegan Diet

Ten Ways Vegans Can Boost Their Iron Intake

Vegan Iron Sources in the Grocery Store

Latin American Vegan Foods High in Iron

Sources of information for the iron content of foods was package labels and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Center. FoodData Central.

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