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Preventing
Osteoporosis:
Daily
Calcium Requirements
How much calcium do
I need daily
Calcium needs change during one's
lifetime (see chart below). The body's demand for calcium is greater
during childhood and adolescence when the skeleton is growing rapidly,
and during pregnancy and breastfeeding. Postmenopausal women and
older men also need more calcium. This is because, as you age, your
body becomes less efficient at absorbing calcium and other nutrients.
| Age |
Required
calcium per day |
| Birth - 6
months |
400 mg |
| 6 mths -
1 year |
600 mg |
| 1 - 10 years |
800 - 1200
mg |
| 11-24 years |
1200 - 1500
mg |
| 25-50 (women
& men) |
1000 mg |
| 51-64 (women
on ERT* & men) |
1000 mg |
| 51+ (women
not on ERT) |
1500 mg |
| 65 or older |
1500 mg |
What foods contain
calcium?
Green leafy vegetables, fish and
their bones, milk and other dairy products are rich in calcium. Depending
upon how much calcium you get each day from food, you may need to take
a calcium supplement. Listed below are various sources of calcium in food:
| Food item |
Calcium
(milligrams per 100 g) |
% of RDI
*
(for 25-50 yr old) |
| Vegetables
& Fruits |
|
|
| Cauliflower |
140 mg |
14% |
| Fenugreek
("methi") |
470 mg |
12% |
| Spinach ("paalak") |
60 mg |
6% |
| Ladies fingers |
90 mg |
9% |
| Beetroot |
200 mg |
20% |
| Cabbage |
80 mg |
6% |
| Figs ("anjeer") |
60 mg |
3% |
| Grapes (blue) |
30 mg |
7% |
| Dates ("khajoor") |
70 mg |
5% |
| Oranges |
50 mg |
10% |
| Raisins |
100 mg |
11% |
| Apple |
10 mg |
9% |
| Banana |
10 mg |
1% |
| Papaya |
10 mg |
1% |
| |
|
|
| Meat,
Fish, Eggs |
|
|
| Chicken (meat) |
30 mg |
3% |
| Mutton (muscle) |
150 mg |
15% |
| Pork (muscle) |
30 mg |
3% |
| Crab (muscle) |
1370 mg |
137% |
| Prawn |
320 mg |
32% |
| Mackerel
("bangda") |
430 mg |
43% |
| Rohu |
650 mg |
65% |
| Egg. Hen's |
60 mg |
6% |
|
|
|
| Cereals & Pulses |
|
|
| Bajra |
50 mg |
5% |
| Ragi |
330 mg |
33% |
| Wheat flour, whole |
50 mg |
5% |
| Wheat flour, refined |
20 mg |
2% |
| Rice (raw or parboiled) |
10 mg |
1% |
| Rice (flakes or puffed) |
20 mg |
2% |
| Soyabean |
240 mg |
24% |
| Dal |
160 mg |
16% |
| Black gram dal ("udad dal") |
200 mg |
20% |
|
|
|
| Nuts |
|
|
| Almonds |
230 kg |
23% |
| Groundnuts |
50 mg |
5% |
| Pistachio ("pista") |
140 mg |
14% |
| |
|
|
| Dairy products |
|
|
| Milk, cow's |
120 mg |
12% |
| Milk, buffalo's |
210 mg |
21% |
| Curds, from cow's milk |
120 mg |
12% |
| Cheese |
790 mg |
79% |
| Milk powder, skimmed |
1370 mg |
137% |
| Milk powder, whole |
910 mg |
91% |
* % RDI = Percentage of Recommended
Dietary Intake
Source: Advanced Textbook on Food
& Nutrition - Vol II, by Dr. M. Swaminathan
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