Calcium – Food Sources of Calcium
CALCIUM
Calcium is absolutely essential for reaching your genetic potential (all you are programmed to be) for height and building strong bones.
And your bones are growing like crazy right now!
Seize the moment! Never again will you have this same opportunity and time span to increase your bone mass, ever! If you miss this window of opportunity, you may become vulnerable to your bones thinning later in life (osteoporosis).
Calcium – Food Sources of Calcium Photo Gallery
F.Y.I.
Weight-bearing exercise, during which your bones carry the weight of your body or other weightlike walking or playing volleyball or basketballis also a big factor in keeping your bones strong.
Calcium is found in dairy products (like 1 percent low-fat or skim milk, yogurt, and cheese), canned sardines and canned salmon, spinach, and certain dark green leafy vegetables like collard greens, bok choy turnip greens, mustard greens, and kale. Broccoli and carrots also contain it.
Tempeh (like cheese but made from fermented soybeans or grains), white beans, soybeans, and soy nuts all contain calcium.
Foods fortified with calcium include fortified orange juice, soy milk, soy yogurt, soy cheese, and firm tofu (made with calcium sulfate). Enriched breakfast cereals and certain enriched breads have added calcium.
You can also find calcium in almonds, molasses, and canned pinto beans (and in daily [complete] multivitamin/multimineral supplements for kids).
F.Y.I.
In general, there is not enough calcium in a daily (complete) multivitamin/multimineral supplement to meet calcium requirements. It only partly fulfills calcium needs (1,300 milligrams per day). You can get the rest from food.
GOT MILK? (SKIM OR 1 PERCENT, THAT IS)
Your bones want and need calcium and vitamin D, and these are present in milk. Your body likes protein and carbohydrates, and these and other nutrients are present in milk. Whole milk has too much heart-unfriendly saturated fat (see here) to drink on a routine basis. That is why 1 percent low-fat or skim milk is the way to go: The saturated fat has been removed, but the other nutrients remain the same!
However: Most children between twelve months and two years of age are advised to drink higher-fat milk. Ask the pediatrician.
