Best for Bones Foods
Real Solutions for Bone Health Challenges
You're not alone. Parents everywhere face barriers that make it tough to ensure their daughters get the nutrition they need for good health and building strong bones. Turn challenges into opportunities to help yourself and your family.
Time
Check out these tips for how to get calcium when your family is eating out, pressed for time, or on the go.
Money
- To cut back on food costs, opt for inexpensive foods with calcium, such as powdered milk (can be used in place of regular milk in recipes) and frozen or canned vegetables instead of fresh. Try the store brands, and check to see what's on sale when preparing your list.
- Encourage your daughter to choose low-fat or fat-free milk in the lunch line instead of visiting the vending machines.
- Foods fortified with calcium and vitamin D are usually the same price as the non-fortified versions.
Health Concerns
- To cut down on fat, choose low-fat or fat-free milk. They taste great and actually contain more calcium than whole milk!
- If your daughter feels ill with symptoms such as cramps, bloating, and nausea after eating foods with dairy, talk to her doctor to see if she might be lactose intolerant.
- If she is lactose intolerant, your daughter can get all the calcium and vitamin D she needs from certain non-dairy foods. Look over this list of various foods with calcium and vitamin D.
- Talk to your doctor if you are concerned that your daughter might have unhealthy eating or weight loss habits, such as anorexia nervosa. In addition to greatly damaging her overall health, eating disorders may result in bone loss.
Not enough info
- You want your daughter to eat healthy foods and to be healthy. Calcium and vitamin D are important parts of a healthy diet. Click below to learn more about:
- The importance of calcium and vitamin D
- Sources of calcium and portions
- How much calcium and vitamin D girls need and how to add up the amount of calcium in the foods she eats
Content last updated September 2009
