Calcium is a mineral that accounts for 1-2% of the adult human body weight and plays a vital role in the development and maintenance of a healthy skeleton.
Calcium is found in dairy foods, salmon (with bones), sardines, seafood and dark green leafy vegetables.
Foods that provide more than 100 mg of calcium per serving are limited to dairy products, greens of the mustard family, calcium-set tofu, sardines and some nuts, especially hazelnut and almonds.
Good herbs sources that contains calcium include alfalfa, burdock root, cayenne, chamomile, chickweed, chicory, dandelion, eyebright, fennel seed, fenugreek, flaxseed, hops, horsetails, kelp, lemongrass, mullein, nettle, oat straw, paprika, parsley, peppermint, plantain, raspberry leaves, red clover, rose hips, shepherd’s purse, violet leaves, yarrow, and yellow dock.
Another good food sources that is readily available is calcium fortified orange juice.
A diet that is high in protein, fat and/or sugar affects calcium uptake. The average American diets of meats, refined grains, and softdrink leads to increase excretion of calcium. Consuming alcoholic beverages, coffee, junk foods, excess salt, and/or white flour also leads to the loss of calcium by the body.
Milk and milk products are the best animal sources of calcium. Only 32% of the available calcium in milk is absorbed.
In Western countries, diets that are low in dairy products are generally also low in calcium. Consequently, there has been an increasing trend of fortification of foods with low levels of calcium.
The best dietary sources of calcium are dairy products and green leafy vegetables. However the calcium in vegetables may be poorly absorbed due to being bound to oxalic acid.
Oxalic acid is a compound that is found in plants such as spinach, rhubarb Swiss chard, beet greens and certain vegetables forms an insoluble salt with calcium (calcium oxalate).
Phytate which is another plant compound that is found in grains such as wheat, can bind with calcium and interfere with its intestinal absorption.
Sources of calcium in diets
