Calcium

What is calcium and why do I need it?

Calcium is the mineral in your body that makes up your bones and keeps them strong. Ninety-nine percent of the calcium in your body is stored in your bones and teeth. The remaining 1% is in your blood and soft tissues and is essential for life and health. Without this tiny 1% of calcium, your muscles wouldn’t contract correctly, your blood wouldn’t clot and your nerves wouldn’t carry messages. (From calciuminfo.com)

How much calcium do I need?

The daily recommended intake amount for adults (set by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration) for calcium is 1000 mg. Adolescents and young adults need more: 1,200 - 1,500 mg daily.

How can I tell if my daily calcium intake is adequate?

An alarming 80% of Americans don't consume adequate amounts of calcium daily. Most of the calcium consumed in the typical American diet comes from dairy products. You can quickly estimate calcium intake by using the simple formula below. If you don't eat dairy products, use the calcium content tables below.

Source	Servings per day	Calcium/ serving		Calcium content
Milk 8 oz.	_______ x	300 mg	=	______ mg
Yogurt 8 oz.	_______ x	400 mg	=	______ mg
Hard cheese 1 oz.	_______ x	200 mg	=	______ mg

What are good sources of calcium?

Dairy foods, cereals fortified with calcium, and fortified orange juices are excellent sources of calcium. Memorize the calcium content in a few of the high calcium foods you regularly eat to gauge your daily calcium intake. Get into a habit of never missing these high calcium foods.

For foods not listed here, check the food labels on the package. With a brief calculation, percent Daily Value, meaning recommended daily intake, (listed as "%DV" on food labels) will tell you the amount of calcium. The DV for adults for calcium is 1000 mg. So if a cup of cereal gives you 10% DV, you would be getting 100 mg of calcium. Remember that adolescents and young adults need 1,200 - 1,500 mg daily.

Dairy Products	Calcium (mg)
Milk (8 oz.)	300
Yogurt (8 oz.)	400
Hard cheese (1 oz.)	200
Cottage cheese (1/2 cup)	100
Frozen yogurt (1 cup)	200
Ice cream (1 cup)	160
Parmesan cheese (grated, 1 TBSP)	69
Fast food baked potato w/cheese	350
Fruits and Vegetables
Orange (1 medium)	50
Orange juice, calcium fortified (1 cup)	300
Broccoli, bok choy (1/2 cup)	90
Figs, dried (5 medium)	126
Other Foods
Soymilk, fortified (1 cup)	300
Total cereal (1 cup)	200
Total Raisin Bran (1 cup)	200
Salmon, canned with bones (3 oz.)	160
Sardines, canned with bones (3 oz.)	322
Tofu (4 oz.)	152
Almonds (dried roasted, whole 1/3 cup)	126
Bread (1 slice)	15-40
Cheese pizza (1 slice)	150
Dried beans (lima, navy, kidney)	25-64
Coffee Beverages
Caffe latte (12. oz.)	412
Caffe mocha (12. oz.)	337

If I'm lactose intolerant, what can I do to increase my calcium intake?

Lactose free and lactaid products have calcium contents similar to standard dairy products.

If I'm a vegan (eating no meat or dairy products), what are good sources of calcium?

Getting enough calcium daily in a vegan diet can be more challenging. Calcium-fortified soymilk, orange juice and cereals are excellent staples. Other soy products, figs and some nuts, such as almonds, are also good sources. Consider a calcium supplement.

Should I take a calcium supplement?

If you are not able to get adequate calcium from your food pattern, you should take a calcium supplement. Usually, one 500 mg calcium supplement per day is recommended, taken with meals. You should not exceed a total daily intake of 2500 mg of calcium because this can cause kidney damage and other serious problems from high calcium levels and calcium deposits.

Should I take a Vitamin D supplement?

Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin, which the body can make for itself when exposed to brief periods of sunlight. It is also found in the foods listed below, particularly fortified milk and breakfast cereals. Daily supplements are generally recommended for people with osteoporosis, but should not exceed 400 IU total per day. If you are reliably consuming 400 IU of Vitamin D in your diet, or take a multivitamin (most of which contain 200-400 IU of Vitamin D), you may not need a supplement.

Excess Vitamin D is stored in the body (rather than excreted) and can reach toxic levels over time. Toxicity occurs when people get more than 2000 IU/day and this is almost always the result of supplement pills, rather than foods or sunlight. Toxic levels of Vitamin D cause abnormally high blood calcium and phosphorous levels, calcium deposits and kidney damage.

Some good sources of vitamin D are:

Food	Vitamin D Content
Milk, fortified with vitamin D	100 IU
Soy milk, fortified with vitamin D	100 IU
Post Raisin Bran cereal (1 cup)	60 IU
Egg yolk (1 medium)	25 IU
Multivitamin with 100% daily allowance	400 IU

What calcium supplement should I take?

 TUMS (calcium carbonate) are chewable, inexpensive and easy to find. If you also need Vitamin D you can take a calcium carbonate and Vitamin D combination, such as Viactiv chocolate chews or Caltrate Plus pills. If you have problems with constipation or gas, you may want to try the slightly more expensive but better tolerated calcium citrate (e.g., Citracal) or calcium phosphate (e.g., Posture-D). "Natural" products such as bone meal, unrefined oyster shell, or dolmite calcium should be avoided because of possible lead and mercury contaminants. Generic equivalents are available and tend to be less expensive.

Brand	Elemental Calcium Content	Vitamin D Content	Form
TUMS Regular	200 mg each	None	Chewable
TUMS EX	300 mg each	None	Chewable
TUMS Ultra	400 mg each	None	Chewable
TUMS 500	500 mg each	None	Chewable
Viactiv Chocolate Chew	500 mg each	100 IU	Chewable
Caltrate	600 mg each	None	Swallowed
Caltrate Plus	600 mg each	200 IU	Swallowed
OsCal	250 or 500 mg each	None	Swallowed
Citracel Liquitabs	500 mg each	None	Swallowed
Citracel Caplets + D	315 mg each	200 IU	Swallowed
Posture-D	600 mg each	125 IU	Swallowed

Osteoporosis

If you have or suspect you might have bone loss or osteoporosis you can start today to improve your health.

• Acknowledge that you have or may have osteoporosis and that you can do something about it.
• Get the facts about yourself. Depending on your risk factors, your health care provider may recommend a nutrition evaluation, DEXA Scan or other lab tests.
• Get help. Medical, nutritional and counseling staff can help you normalize your weight, exercise, and nutrition.
• Develop a plan. Your health care provider can work with you to help you achieve your goals. Regular health care visits and adequate intake of calcium are important elements to include.
• Stick with it. Osteoporosis is a life-long issue.

Print our Fact Sheet (pdf) on this topic.