Festive Fatigue: Is Ultra-Processed Party Food to Blame for Iron Deficiency?

A new analysis links a record rise in hospital admissions for iron deficiency to modern diets and ultra processed foods, with women twice as likely to experience iron deficiency as men.

If you’ve felt overwhelmingly exhausted lately, it might be more than just a busy December schedule. 

New analysis of NHS hospital data by Free Soul, a leading UK women’s wellness brand, suggests the UK is facing a quiet public health crisis, with a 1,070% surge in hospital admissions for conditions caused by iron deficiency over the past 25 years.

While the admissions data highlights the most severe cases, health experts warn it is merely “the tip of the iceberg” for a problem silently impacting hundreds of thousands of busy working-age women across the country.

The rise of ultra-processed foods

Health experts point to several factors behind the dramatic rise in iron deficiency, including increased consumption of ultra-processed foods, which are often very nutrient-poor. 

Even those of us with typically healthy diets will end up consuming more of these in the run up to Christmas, with everything from prepackaged mince pies, snacks such as crisps and nuts and frozen party-foods.

Natalie Rouse, Registered Nutritionist and Head of Nutrition at Free Soul shares how to spot and tackle an Iron Deficiency:

Preventing iron deficiency before it occurs is always the best approach, which means including enough iron-rich foods in the diet. 

For vegetarians and vegans, iron absorption can be enhanced by combining non-haem sources with vitamin C-rich foods and being mindful of consuming inhibitors like tea and coffee around meal times.

I always recommend that individuals who are concerned about their iron levels should:

• Incorporate iron-rich foods into their diet, like beans, nuts, dried fruit, fortified cereals, and red meat (provided the individual isn’t vegan or vegetarian)
• Consider iron supplementation, particularly for women with heavy periods or for people who are following a vegan or vegetarian diet
• Pair iron-rich foods with good sources of vitamin C in order to enhance iron absorption
• Consult their GP if they’re experiencing symptoms of iron deficiency.

Rouse said: 

“Iron is essential for producing haemoglobin, which carries oxygen around the body. Without sufficient iron, people can develop anaemia, leading to extreme tiredness and weakness that can really undermine their quality of life.

In the most severe cases hospitalisation might be necessary, which means that this NHS hospital admissions data is really just the tip of the iceberg. 

There will be far more adults in the UK suffering from a level of iron deficiency that doesn’t warrant a visit to hospital but could still be impacting their quality of life and causing fatigue.

Despite long-standing evidence of widespread shortfalls in women’s iron status, this message often fails to reach or resonate with the public and even when it does, it’s not consistently acted upon. 

Too often, it’s dismissed as ‘just the way things have always been,’ yet the consequences are significant: iron deficiency can have a serious, long-term impact on health and wellbeing, with lasting effects that extend far beyond immediate symptoms.”  

Free Soul’s range of nutritional supplements includes iron-fortified products like its Vegan Protein Blend, which has been specifically formulated to support women’s health and help bridge nutritional gaps in modern diets.