The WebSmartIdeas aims to promote and disseminate good creative ideas to improve society.

The Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) is the daily dietary intake level that is sufficient to meet the nutrient requirements of nearly all (97-98%) healthy individuals in each life-stage and gender group. The 2001 RDAs for iron (in milligrams) for infants ages 7 to 12 months, children and adults are:

Normal full term infants are born with a supply of iron that lasts for 4 to 6 months. Evidence is not available to establish a RDA for iron for infants from birth through 6 months of age. Recommended iron intake for infants from 0 to 6 months is based on an Adequate Intake (AI) of 0.27 milligrams (mg) per day that reflects the average iron intake of breastfed infants. Iron in human milk (breast milk) is well absorbed by infants. It is estimated that infants can use greater than 50% of the iron in breast milk as compared to typically less than 12% of the iron in infant formula. Cow milk is not only low in iron and poorly absorbed by infants, its use in infancy can cause gastrointestinal bleeding and iron loss from the body. For these reasons, cow milk should not be fed to infants until after age 1. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that infants who are not breastfed or who are partially breastfed should receive an iron-fortified formula from birth to 12 months. Formulas that contain between 4.0 to 12 milligrams of iron per liter of formula are considered iron-fortified. 

Results of two national surveys, the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey and the Continuing Survey of Food Intakes by Individuals indicate that diets of most adult men and post-menopausal women provide recommended amounts of iron. Diets of females of childbearing age, pregnant women, and women who breast-feed generally do not provide recommended amounts of iron.