Good nutrition is important for good health and can help protect against many diseases later in life. However, one important nutrient many kids and teens do not get enough of is calcium, found mainly in milk and dairy products and in dark green, leafy vegetables and foods with added calcium.
Calcium is a nutrient that helps to make bones and teeth strong and healthy. It is used in building bone mass and also helps to reduce the risk of bone fracture due to osteoporosis, a condition where bones become fragile and can break easily.
How do we build strong bones?
Our bodies continually remove and replace small amounts of calcium from our bones. If your body removes more calcium than it replaces, your bones will become weaker and have a greater chance of breaking. But by getting the recommended amount of calcium, you can help your bones stay strong.
Calcium needs are highest during the childhood and teen years because bones are growing fast then and calcium must be added into bones to make them strong. Most of the calcium that makes bones strong is added by the age of seventeen. By eating and drinking foods that are good sources of calcium, children and teens can help store this important nutrient in their bones for later in life.
As adults, we lose calcium. The more calcium that is in the bones when loss begins, the less likely it is that bones will become fragile and fracture easily.
How much calcium do children need?
Nutrition guidelines recommend that children ages four through eight get 800 milligrams of calcium per day, or about two servings of “milk group” foods daily. Teens and young adults, ages nine to eighteen, need more calcium because their bones are growing more than at other times of life. They should have 1,300 mg of calcium per day, or about three servings of milk group foods daily. One 8-ounce glass of milk has about 300 mg of calcium, so just a few glasses can go a long way towards getting the calcium needed each day.
What is the calcium content of foods?
Food labels can tell you how much calcium is in one serving of a food. Look at the Percent Daily Value (DV) next to the calcium number on the food label.
Try to eat and drink foods with 20 percent or more DV for calcium (like milk). These foods are good sources of calcium. Foods with less than 5 percent DV for calcium only give you a small amount of what you need each day.
For most adults, 100 percent DV = 1,000 mg of calcium. But children ages nine through eighteen need extra calcium. This age group needs 1,300 mg (130 DV), an additional 300 mg of calcium each day. That means an extra eight-ounce glass of milk or extra servings of another calcium-rich food.
How much calcium do children get?
Unfortunately, most children and teens do not meet calcium recommendations. National nutrition surveys show that only 19 percent of teen girls and 52 percent of teen boys get the recommended amounts of calcium. In fact, teenage girls only average about 740 mg of calcium per day, well below the amount needed for their normal growth and development.
Where do we find calcium?
Low-fat and fat-free milk and dairy products, such as cheese and yogurt, are excellent sources of calcium. In addition to having lots of calcium, milk and dairy products provide other essential nutrients, all necessary for good bone health and development. These include phosphorus, magnesium, and added vitamin D in milk.
Other sources of calcium include dark green, leafy vegetables, such as kale, and foods like broccoli, soybeans, tofu processed with calcium, orange juice with calcium added, and other calcium-fortified foods.
What is the best kind of milk?
Fat-free (skim) and low-fat (1 percent) milk and dairy products are excellent choices because they make it easy to get enough calcium without adding a lot of extra fat and saturated fat to the diet. For example, a glass of whole milk contributes 25 percent (1/4) of your total saturated fat for the day, while a glass of low-fat milk contributes only 7.5 percent of the total saturated fat. There are now a variety of milk products available including different levels of fat and even different flavors, but an eight-oz glass (one cup) of any variety still contains about 300 mg of calcium.
