Catching up on Calcium for your Health

If you watch tv much, you may have seen the "Got Milk" commercials or the commercials that boast that drinking calcium can help you lose or maintain your weight. While there is some current research coming out that is suggesting that incorporating dairy into your diet can be beneficial to maintaining a healthy weight, it is definitely not a magic weight loss drink.

However, the calcium in milk and other dairy products has tremendous health benefits. Men and women age 19-51 need 1000mg of calcium every day. Did you know that 90% of adult women and 73% of adult men do not meed these guidelines? Calcium is critical to the health of your bones and teeth, and it also plays a key role in muscle contraction.

So how do you make sure you eat 1000mg of calcium each day? Milk provides 30% of your daily value (DV) so 1000mg can look like a little over 3 cups of milk each day. Not a milk drinker? Not a problem. Other dairy products like low fat cheese and yogurt are also good sources of calcium. You may need to check the label of some yogurts to see how much calcium you are getting as different types contain different amounts. For example, Greek yogurt is higher in protein than a regular yogurt but it is lower in calcium than a regular yogurt. Also, be conscious of serving sizes. MyPyramid for dietary guidelines (www.mypyramid.gov) recommends 3 cups of dairy a day but one yogurt cup may not equal one cup of dairy. Many yogurts come in lunch box size cups that are only 4 or 6 oz. and while they boast few calories, they may not be providing your body with enough calcium. If you don't like dairy products, you can look for fortified cereals and orange juice. These have calcium added to them so you get the health benefits of dairy even if you can't tolerate or just don't like milk products.

Sometimes you may find that as hard as you try, your diet is just not meeting the recommended amount of calcium. You can look into calcium supplementation but you should talk with your doctor or a nutritionist first to make sure it is really necessary. These pills are usually best absorbed when taken periodically through out the day instead of only at one time. Your body can only take in so much calcium at a time so even with food, it is best to spread out your calcium through out the day.

On an additional note, the main health benefit of calcium is its effect on bone density. You can do even more for healthy bones by participating in weight bearing exercise a few times a week. Activities like running, walking, and lifting weights are a great way to strengthen your bones. Healthy habits today can have huge benefits in the future when you have strong bones from eating enough calcium and putting time into exercise. Check out the website www.nationaldairycouncil.org for more ways you can incorporate dairy into your day.