By Donna V. Scaglione
The most recent study to link calcium supplements with heart attack risk among women has researchers encouraging people over age 50 to get their daily recommended 1,200 milligrams of the mineral from food sources. The study published this week in the journal BMJ supports previous findings, and the lead author called for a reassessment of using calcium supplements to fight the bone-thinning disease osteoporosis.
“The cautious way forward seems to be to encourage people to obtain their calcium from the diet, rather than from supplements, since food calcium has not been shown to carry this increased risk of heart disease,” Dr. Ian Reid of the University of Auckland in New Zealand told Health Day.
Does this mean you have to start drinking lots of milk? Not necessarily. Many foods, including milk, are rich in calcium and probably are already part of your diet.
1. Yogurt
With 415 mg in an 8-ounce cup, plain, low-fat yogurt is a calcium superstar, supplying more than one-third of the daily amount federal health officials recommend. If you like your yogurt sweet, an 8-ounce cup of low-fat, fruit yogurt packs 245 to 384 mg of calcium, according to a National Institutes of Health listing of calcium-containing foods. If you enjoy your yogurt ice cold, one-half cup of frozen soft-serve vanilla yogurt has 103 mg.
Other calcium-rich dairy foods include:
· Cheddar cheese, 306 mg in 1.5 ounces (about the size of two dominoes)
· Part-skim mozzarella cheese, 275 mg in 1.5 ounces
· Non-fat milk, 302 mg in 8 ounces
