Calcium plays a vital role in our diet and is the most abundant mineral in the body. An adequate intake of calcium helps everyone grow a healthy skeleton early in life and minimizes bone loss later in life.

Ninety-nine percent of the calcium in our bodies is found in our bones and teeth. Calcium is an important part in our bone structure, which provides a frame to hold our body upright and serves as an attachment for our muscles. It serves as a calcium bank, which helps in the absorption of the other minerals in our fluids and in the regulation of muscle contraction and relaxation.

A low calcium intake during childhood can lead to stunted growth, which leads to a failure to achieve an optimal bone mass. Most people achieve optimal bone mass by the age of 20 and start losing it by age 40. Osteoporosis, a calcium deficiency, occurs when bones become fragile and dense and it affects more than 25 million people in the United States, mostly women.

Calcium is found most abundantly in dairy products, which consist of milk, yogurt, cheese, and ice cream. Some people perceive these types of food to be “fattening,” so people end up omitting them from their diet.

Other reasons why some people don’t receive calcium in their diet simply because their culture lacks milk products, a person might be vegan, or because a person is allergic to milk or is unable to digest it (“lactose-intolerant”). People with lactose intolerance are advised to drink soymilk or lactose-free milk.

Non-milk sources of calcium include tofu, corn tortillas, almonds, and sesame seeds. Among vegetables that contain calcium are mustard and turnip greens, parsley, broccoli, and spinach. Oysters and small fish cooked with their bones, such as sardines, offer good sources of calcium. There are also calcium-fortified foods, and a food that is fortified is when certain nutrients are added to foods that were not present or present in insignificant amounts. Some examples of fortified foods are orange juice or other fruit juices, high-calcium milk, and different cereals. Having a diet that includes dairy products, vegetables, fortified foods, supplements, and exercising will give you results of an optimum calcium level in your diet, which will prevent osteoporosis later in life.