Choices for achieving adequate dietary calcium with a vegetarian diet.
To achieve adequate dietary calcium intake, several choices are available that accommodate a variety of lifestyles and tastes. Liberal consumption of dairy products in the diet is the approach of most Americans. Some plants provide absorbable calcium, but the quantity of vegetables required to reach sufficient calcium intake make an exclusively plant-based diet impractical for most individuals unless fortified foods or supplements are included. Also, dietary constituents that decrease calcium retention, such as salt, protein, and caffeine, can be high in the vegetarian diet. Although it is possible to obtain calcium balance from a plant-based diet in a Western lifestyle, it may be more convenient to achieve calcium balance by increasing calcium consumption than by limiting other dietary factors.
Weaver
C M
CM
Department of Foods and Nutrition, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907-1264, USA. weavercm@cfs.purdue.edu
Proulx
W R
WR
Heaney
R
R
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001682:Biological Availability; D002110:Caffeine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects; D002136:Calcium, Dietary / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000493:pharmacokinetics; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D014676:Diet, Vegetarian; D004044:Dietary Proteins / Q000008:administration & dosage; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008875:Middle Aged; D009751:Nutritional Requirements; D011247:Pregnancy; D017673:Sodium Chloride, Dietary / Q000008:administration & dosage
D002136:Calcium, Dietary; D004044:Dietary Proteins; D017673:Sodium Chloride, Dietary; D002110:Caffeine