Did you know that 10 million Americans have Osteoporosis and 18 million have low bone mass putting them at an increased risk to develop the disease?
Did you also know that this disease can be prevented via a diet of calcium rich foods like milk, dairy and leafy green veggies?
Think of your bones as a bank account: You deposit and save calcium so you’ll have enough to draw on later in life. So make the investment now, it’s almost impossible to make up for it later!
Use this chart to figure out how much Calcium is recommended for your age group and how many milk group servings that equivocates to.
| Age | Recommended Daily Calcium Intakes (mg) | Milk Group Servings |
| 1-3 | 500 mg | 3 *(serving size of milk is 6 oz) |
| 4-5 | 750 mg | 2-3 |
| 6-9 | 900 mg | 3 |
| 9-18 | 1300mg | 4 |
| 19-51 | 1000mg | 3 |
| 51+ | 1200mg | 4 |
It is important to remember that a milk serving provides about 300 mg of Calcium (amount in 1 cup of milk).
Non fat yogurt (8oz) provides about 300 mg Ca or 1 milk serving, but if you only eat 6 oz (common portion size), that only counts for ¾ of a milk serving!
These foods are calcium rich and count as 1 cup in the milk group:
Notice that the portions listed aren’t necessarily the serving size for these products, but they are the amount needed to equal the amount of calcium in 1 cup of milk. (Ex. 3 servings of ice cream or 1.5 cups are needed to equal 1 cup of milk.)
However there are several other foods that are rich in calcium that aren’t even dairy products:
Ways to Sneak Calcium into other foods
· Make fluffier scrambled eggs with milk. Whisk about 2 Tablespoons of milk into egg batter and add lowfat shredded cheese
· Mix fresh or frozen berries, a banana and lowfat vanilla yogurt into a blender for a cool smoothie
· Instead of water…….use milk in foods such as oatmeal, or when making rice and instant potatoes.
BBQ Chicken and Cheddar Foil Packet Dinner
3 TBSP BBQ sauce
4 small boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
2 small unpeeled red potatoes, thinly sliced
1 red or green pepper seeded and sliced
1 green onion, finely chopped
¼ teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1-1/2 cups shredded reduced fat Cheddar Cheese
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Place a 12 X 12 foils sheet on a work surface. Spoon about 1 teaspoon of BBQ sauce in center of foil sheet. Place one chicken breast half over BBQ sauce and spread another teaspoon over chicken. Top with a quarter of the potato, bell pepper and onion. Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper.
Fold foil in half to cover contents; make narrow folds along edges to seal. Repeat with remaining ingredients to assemble 3 more packets. Place packets on a baking sheet and bake for 35 minutes.
Open foil packets with scissors and carefully pull back edges. Sprinkle a quarter of the cheese over the top of each chicken breast half and return to oven, unsealed for 2 more minutes to melt cheese.
Nutrition Facts per serving: Calories: 290; Fat 4.5g; Sat Fat: 2.5g; Cholesterol: 75 mg: Sodium: 630 mg; Calcium 20% Daily Value; Protein: 38g; Fiber: 2 g;
