Calcium is required by the body to form bones and teeth. It is especially important to growing children, and to pregnant and breastfeeding women. Most people on an ordinary diet get all their calcium needs from milk, cheese and yogurt. For children aged between one and nine, three-quarters of a pint of milk a day supplies their recommended intake of 500 milligrams. If you cut all milk (including goat and sheep’s milk) out of your diet, you need to make sure you are eating enough calcium from alternative sources.
The recommended daily intake of calcium is as follows:
Foods Rich in Calcium
Broccoli, watercress, soya, nuts, figs, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, parsley and molasses are rich sources of calcium. Other good sources include most green leafy vegetables, beans and pulses, and carob powder.
White bread and other foods made of white flour are moderately good sources of calcium, but wholemeal bread is a poor source of calcium, containing phytic acid which interferes with calcium absorption. Spinach contains a high level of calcium but also contains oxalic acid which renders most of the calcium unab-sorbable. The bones of fish in canned fish are high in calcium, but it is disputed whether calcium eaten in that form is absorbed by the body.
It is possible, even on a rotation diet, to keep up calcium levels by eating a variety of calcium-rich foods. In particular, it is useful to eat dried fruit, nuts and seeds as snacks, and to use garnishes of sesame seed, sunflower seed and parsley on salads and casseroles. Use tahini in salad dressing. You can use nut spreads and nut milks in soups and stews making nut milks). Use carob, molasses, dried fruit, seeds and nuts in biscuits or cakes.
Milligrams per day
Pregnant and breastfeeding women 1200
Children: up to 1 year 600
1-8 years 500
9-14 years 700
15-17 years 600
500 1200 600 500 700 600
If the body has insufficient Vitamin D, calcium cannot be absorbed from the bloodstream. Vitamin D is formed naturally in the skin when exposed to sunlight and, if you encounter normal amounts of sunlight, you should have no deficiency at all. Fatty fish and fish liver oils are rich sources of Vitamin D, as are eggs, milk, butter, cheese and margarine (Vitamin D is added to the latter). Even if you have to leave any of these foods out of a special diet, you should have no problem with Vitamin D deficiency provided you are getting out of doors regularly.
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