Iron out fatigue

A new range of natural health supplements, designed especially for women, hopes to help iron out fatigue and give energy levels a boost.

The Belle+ syrups are a range of rosehip syrups that harness the health benefits of the hedgerow fruit, which has been found to be rich in Vitamin C and studies 2-8 have confirmed contains an extremely powerful class of anti-oxidants, called polyphenols, that seem capable of giving the body a serious boost.

Each of the syrups in the range has an added benefit and of particular interest to active women will be Belle+ with iron. Iron plays a key role in many body functions, including energy production, muscle contraction, and brain function and low levels of it have been linked to fatigue.

In fact in a study, published in the British Medical Journal, looked at 136 non-anemic women between the ages of 18 and 55 years with persistent fatigue, who were assigned to receive 80 mg per day of iron or a placebo for four weeks. The women who took the iron supplement had a 29% decrease in their level of fatigue, compared with a 13% decrease in those taking a placebo. The energy increase was only seen in those women who had low iron levels, indicated iron supplements can directly help beat fatigue in these individuals - with as much as 20% of women of childbearing age thought to be at risk of low iron levels*.

Belle+ with iron offers an easy way to add the benefits of both rosehips and iron to your diet and is available from phytacol.com for just £5.75. One teaspoon contains 50% of your RDA of iron.

* Always consult a health advisor before a taking iron supplements as a common genetic disorder called hemochromatosis causes excessive accumulation of iron in the body; individuals with this disorder who take supplemental iron could develop liver disease or other serious problems