955 E Main Street, STE E83, Lexington, SC 29073 U.S. toll-free: 1-888-800-5582 International: +1 845-875-6155

Natural Home Cures Since 2004

Freeze-dried botanicals grown on our own farms.

Shop Now

Editorial illustration of whole and cut mangosteen with thick ruby pericarp

Natural Home Cures · Mangosteen science

Iron
& Mangosteen

Iron: Essential for Oxygen Transport and Cellular Function

Oxygen transport · Cells
Explore the science ↓
Editorial illustration: Plant foods and the iron story.
An everyday food connectionPlant foods and the iron story.Beans and lentils contain non-heme iron.

Iron helps your blood carry oxygen and supports the work of muscles and cells. Start with its role in the body, explore its food sources, then look at what researchers have measured in mangosteen.

FeIron / an essential mineral

01 · Begin with the essentials

How Oxygen Reaches Your Cells

Oxygen enters your lungs when you breathe. To reach the rest of your body, it travels in the blood attached to hemoglobin, a protein in red blood cells. Iron is an essential part of that protein and helps it carry oxygen.(1)

02 · Normal biological roles

Iron at Work in the Body

Conceptual red blood cells illustrating oxygen transport

Carry oxygen.

Hemoglobin picks up oxygen in the lungs and carries it through the bloodstream to tissues.(1)

Conceptual cutaway of striated skeletal muscle fibers

Supply oxygen to muscles.

Myoglobin is an iron-containing protein that helps supply oxygen within muscle tissue.(1)

Conceptual mitochondrial cutaway illustrating cellular energy processes

Support cellular energy.

Iron-containing proteins contribute to energy processes and enzyme reactions.(1)

FeIron

03 · The oxygen connection

How Iron Binds Oxygen

Hemoglobin contains small structures called heme groups. At the center of each is an iron atom that can bind oxygen. This allows hemoglobin to pick up oxygen in the lungs and release it where it is needed.(1)

Nutrition in focus

Low Iron Stores and Fatigue

If iron stores fall too low, the body may not make enough normal hemoglobin. Iron-deficiency anemia can then cause fatigue, weakness, breathlessness and reduced exercise capacity. The body’s iron reserves can become depleted before anemia develops.(1)

A 2012 trial followed 198 menstruating women who had fatigue and low ferritin, a blood marker used to assess iron stores, but did not have anemia. For 12 weeks, they received either a daily supplement containing 80 mg of elemental iron or a placebo. Reported fatigue improved more in the iron group. The finding concerns women selected for low iron stores; blood tests help identify who may need iron treatment.(6)

Editorial food illustration of lentils, leafy greens, red bell pepper and citrus
Plant foods and vitamin C: a nutritional pairing

04 · Understand the form

Why the Type of Iron Matters

Heme iron

Present in meat, seafood and poultry, which also contain non-heme iron. Heme iron is generally more readily absorbed.(1)

Non-heme iron

Plant foods and iron-fortified foods provide non-heme iron. This is the form relevant to mangosteen.(1)

05 · Everyday food sources

Iron in Everyday Foods

Seafood, legumes, leafy greens and fortified cereals provide iron in different forms and amounts.(1)

Illustrative food photograph: Cooked salmon on a ceramic plate

Seafood

Contains heme and non-heme iron

Illustrative food photograph: Bowls of lentils and chickpeas

Beans & lentils

Plant-based non-heme iron

Illustrative food photograph: Spinach and kale in a ceramic bowl

Leafy greens

Plant-based non-heme iron

Illustrative food photograph: Breakfast cereal beside an unbranded carton

Fortified cereals

Check for added iron

Plants also use iron, including in the reactions that support photosynthesis.

Editorial macro illustration of a glossy green mangosteen leaf with detailed veins and sunlight
Iron participates in the biology of the living plant

06 · Before harvest

The Tree Needs
Iron Too.

In plants, iron-containing proteins help transfer electrons during photosynthesis, the process that captures energy from sunlight. Iron also supports the reactions that release usable energy during respiration.(4)

PhotosynthesisRespirationEnzyme activity

Researchers have measured iron separately in the edible flesh and the outer pericarp.

07 · Measurements need context

Iron in Mangosteen Flesh and Pericarp

Two studies examined different parts of the fruit using different sample preparations. Read each figure alongside the material that was tested.

Fresh edible flesh0.09–0.55

mg per 100 g fresh weight

Range summarized in the 2026 review.(2)
Prepared pericarp sample9.02

mg per 100 g, as reported

2014 mineral analysis using a dried pericarp sample.(5)

The flesh and pericarp results describe different tissues. Region, season and sample preparation also need to be considered before comparing the numbers.(3), (5)

Natural Home Cures mangosteen capsules with fresh mangosteen fruit on sunlit limestone

08 · From fruit to product

Whole Mangosteen Pericarp, Freeze-Dried

Our Freeze-Dried Rich Pericarp Mangosteen Capsules begin with the thick outer pericarp of Garcinia mangostana. After harvest, that pericarp is freeze-dried for our capsules.

The pericarp is used as a whole plant ingredient, with its structural material and naturally associated compounds.

Explore our mangosteen →
The research behind this article

Source References

6 sources Show referencesHide references
  1. 01
    Nutrition referenceIron: Fact Sheet for Health Professionals.

    National Institutes of Health, Office of Dietary Supplements.

    Full citation
    National Institutes of Health, Office of Dietary Supplements. Iron: Fact Sheet for Health Professionals.
    View source
  2. 02
    Mangosteen reviewPhytochemicals and Bioactive Properties of Mangosteen: A Comprehensive Review

    Yan et al. (2026) · Food Bioscience 79:108569.

    Full citation
    Yan et al. (2026). Phytochemicals and Bioactive Properties of Mangosteen: A Comprehensive Review. Food Bioscience 79:108569.
    View source
  3. 03
    Composition studyNutritional and bioactive compound analysis of mangosteen fruit in hill and flat land plantations, during both the season and off-season, in provinces along the Gulf of Thailand and the Andaman Sea

    Matan, Kongchoosi, Sinthupachee & Chaidech (2024) · NFS Journal 36:100182.

    Full citation
    Matan, Kongchoosi, Sinthupachee & Chaidech (2024). Nutritional and bioactive compound analysis of mangosteen fruit in hill and flat land plantations, during both the season and off-season, in provinces along the Gulf of Thailand and the Andaman Sea. NFS Journal 36:100182.
    View source
  4. 04
    Research referenceA quick journey into the diversity of iron uptake strategies in photosynthetic organisms. Plant Signaling & Behavior 16(11):1975088.

    Martín-Barranco, Thomine, Vert & Zelazny (2021)

    Full citation
    Martín-Barranco, Thomine, Vert & Zelazny (2021). A quick journey into the diversity of iron uptake strategies in photosynthetic organisms. Plant Signaling & Behavior 16(11):1975088.
    View source
  5. 05
    Composition studyA Study on Nutrient and Medicinal Compositions of Selected Indian Garcinia Species

    Parthsarathy & Nandakishore (2014) · Current Bioactive Compounds 10(1):55–61.

    Full citation
    Parthsarathy & Nandakishore (2014). A Study on Nutrient and Medicinal Compositions of Selected Indian Garcinia Species. Current Bioactive Compounds 10(1):55–61.
    View source
  6. 06
    Nutrition researchVaucher et al. (2012): Effect of iron supplementation on fatigue in nonanemic menstruating women with low ferritin: a randomized controlled trial
    View source ↗