It’s not a secret that calcium is required for healthy bones and teeth. It helps body to regulate blood pressure, maintain healthy blood vessels and also prevents insulin resistance. The recommended amount of calcium for an adult is 1000 mg per day, but most of the Americans fail to meet this mark.
Milk, cheese and yogurt are the main sources of calcium. There are some people who don’t like dairy products. These people can rely on green leafy vegetables, legumes, oranges, almonds etc. to get this essential nutrient. Make sure to pair up your calcium rich foods with vitamin D as body needs vitamin D to absorb calcium.
Here is a List of 9 Dairy Free Sources of Calcium:
White Beans – White beans are famous for their high fiber. They have several health benefits. Just 100 gram of white beans offers 90 mg of calcium. They fulfill 10% of your recommended calcium amount in the diet. Beans are versatile, so they can be used into any meal.
Dried Figs –Taking two of these healthy fruit can give you 55 mg of calcium. It fulfills almost 6% of your daily calcium need. Figs also offer potassium and fiber due to which they’re great for adding to your regular diet.
Bok Choy – Bok Choy is enriched with vitamin A & C, calcium and fiber. Add it to your salad, vegetable juices, smoothies, soups, or other vegetable dishes as a topping. 100 mg of Bok Choy offers 105 mg of calcium.
Black eyed Peas – One cup of black eyed peas offer 20% of recommended daily amount of calcium, magnesium, iron and folate. Pump up your meal with the peas for a healthy diet.
Broccoli – You must add cruciferous vegetables to your diet to have a well-balanced diet. Broccoli contains high level of calcium and vitamin K, so they are good for bone health. Adding broccoli to your diet can reduce the risk of osteoporosis. It also improves your immune system, blood pressure and heart health. One cup serving of broccoli offers 74 mg of calcium.
Oranges – This fruit is overloaded with essential vitamin C nutrient. It also contains calcium. One navel orange offers about 60 mg of calcium to the human body.
Salmon – Salmon is an alternative to red meat. It offers calcium and vitamin b12 to human body. 154gm of salmon offers about 20 mg of calcium i.e., about 2% of recommended calcium required by a human body. In addition to it, salmon also increases cognitive function, prevent certain cancers, and improve skin and hair health.
Almonds –A half cup of almonds offers 183 mg of calcium and that is 18% of the recommended amount required by a human body in a day. Almonds also promote weight loss, heart health and colon health. They also offer vitamin E to the body that help in nourishing hair.
Kale – One cup serving of kale contains 90 mg of calcium that offers about 9% of daily recommended calcium amount for an individual. Start eating kale by adding it to your salad or soup.
Adding these dairy free sources to your diet will offer you enough amount of calcium and prevent you from the risk of osteoporosis. If anyone doesn’t like the above mentioned food sources then they can add chewable calcium supplements to their diet. Various calcium supplements are available in the market such as Caltrate Calcium supplements, Viactiv Calcium supplements, Citracal Calcium Supplements etc.
Calcium Vitamin Supplements 