So if you are avoiding cow based dairy products, where will you find your calcium? No problem!! Here are lots of examples for you to choose from. It adds up!
|
Dietary Reference Intake for Calcium |
||
|
|
Age |
Mg / Day |
|
Infants |
0-6 months |
200 |
|
|
7-12 months |
260 |
|
Children |
1-3 |
700 |
|
|
4-8 |
1000 |
|
|
9-18 |
1300 |
|
Females/Males |
19-50 |
1000 |
|
Males |
51-70 |
1000 |
|
Females |
51-70 |
1200 |
|
Females/Males |
71+ |
1200 |
Cow-Dairy Sources of Calcium:
| Food | Serving Size | Calcium mg/serving |
| Milk | 1 cup | 315 mg |
| Cheese | 1 oz | 130-200 mg |
| Cottage cheese | 4 oz | 100 mg |
| Plain yogourt | ½ cup | 200g |
Non-Dairy Sources of Calcium
| Food | Serving Size | Calcium mg/serving |
| Orange juice, calcium fortified | 1 cup | 300-350 mg |
| Rice milk, fortified | 1 cup | 300 mg |
| Almonds | ½ cup | 300 mg |
| Sesame seeds | 1/8 cup | 275 mg |
| Sardines, canned with bones | 6 medium | 275 mg |
| Tofu | 1 cup | 258 mg |
| Salmon, sockeye, canned with bones | ½ can | 245 mg |
| Soybeans | ½ cup | 230 mg |
| Almond butter | 3 oz | 225 mg |
| White beans, cooked | 1 cup | 170 mg |
| Baked beans | 1 cup | 163 mg |
| Blackstrap molasses | 1 tbsp | 137 mg |
| Home-made almond milk (see recipe below) | 1 cup | 75 mg |
Other sources of calcium:
- Vegetables (artichoke, asparagus, avocado, beans, broccoli, cabbage, carrot, collard greens, kale, okra, parsley, peas, spinach, swiss chard, turnip greens, watercress)
- Nut butters (cashew butter, tahini, all-natural peanut butter, sunflower seed butter)
- Beans and Rice (brown rice, chick peas, kidney beans, navy benas, pinto beans, wild rice)
- Seaweed (Agar, Irish moss, kelp, wakame)
Hidden sources of cow dairy on food labels:
Artificial butter flavour, butter, butterfat, buttermilk, casein, caseinates, curds, custards, half and half, hydrolysates, lactalbumin, lactose, nougat, pudding, rennet casein, sour creams, sour milk solids, whey, yogurt.
Stay away from whey based shakes!!
Make your own almond milk!
Soak ½ cup of raw almonds in water overnight. Rinse and drain. Remove skin (optional). Add to blender with 2 cups of filtered water and blend until smooth. Drain through 3-4 layers of cheese cloth to remove pulp. Store in fridge for 2-3 days; shake or stir if necessary as separation will occur.
References:
- Bateson-Koch, Carolee. Allergies: Disease in Disguise. Books Alive, 1994.
- Case, Shelley. Gluten-Free Diet: A Comprehensive Resource Guide. Case Nutrition Consulting, 2002.
- Shulman, Joey. Winning the Food Fight: Every Parent’s Guide to Raising a Healthy, Happy Child. Wiley, 2003.