Acerola (West Indian cherry) contains .20 milligrams of iron per 100 grams. Grams is a measure of weight. To put 100 grams in perspective, consider alternative measures for this food:
- 1 cup equals 98 grams.
- 1 fruit equals 4 grams.
In the category of fruit, we excluded dried fruit from the Top 10 list and include only fresh fruit. You can assume that if the fresh version made the top 10 list, so too would the dried version.The food tested for the particular graph below can be described more specifically as:
Acerola, (west indian cherry), raw
Read more about iron in fruit or visit our iron-rich foods list.
Fruit on the whole is not a great source of iron but it does play a definite role in your absorption of iron. Fruit is often packed with vitamin C which can help you use the iron more completely in vegetarian foods; acerola is a very ample source of vitamin C.
For example, you can include tomatoes and green peppers with a whole grain entrée or with a bean-based dish to improve your absorption of the iron in your entire meal. A fresh mango dessert along with your meal would also improve your iron metabolism because of the vitamin C in the fruit. A glass of fruit juice is also a great strategy. Read more about how these vitamin C fruits reduce the effect of iron inhibitors in your diet even though they contain little or virtually no iron themselves.