With the new information that increasing your calcium intake helps your body to burn fat, and whittle your waistline, many more people are making it a point to get their three servings a day of milk and dairy products. However, people who are lactose intolerant, or simply don’t like milk or dairy, find this a difficult task, even with all the new calcium enriched foods on the market. What many people don’t know though, is that calcium is found in many other sources, and it is quite easy to fit them into your diet.
For example, many fruits and vegetables contain ample amounts of calcium. A grapefruit contains about 113 milligrams, and a cup of kidney beans provide about 255 milligrams of calcium, almost the same as a serving of dairy. Chickpeas, another great source of fiber, contain about 100 milligrams of calcium, and black-eyed peas, 184. Cooked mustard greens contain about 150 milligrams a cup, and cooked beet greens contain 164, for a cup. Surprisingly, a cup of cooked collard greens contains 357 milligrams of calcium, even more than a serving of dairy.
There are also several seafood meats that contain substantial amounts of calcium per serving. One cup of cooked lobster has 109 milligrams, and a cup of raw oysters contains 100. Also, 3 ounces of canned sardines in oil contains 325 milligrams. Trout is also high in calcium; one 3.5 serving has 218 milligrams. If you’re not a big seafood eater, you can get 232 milligrams of calcium in 4 ounces of tofu.
Most of these are foods most people eat everyday, making it very easy to get plentiful amounts of calcium into your diet. If you don’t eat these foods often, try squeezing a few in everyday. Try topping your lunch time salads with some chickpeas, or crumbled firm tofu. You could also make trout your fish of choice, or make an ordinary dinner special with a fancy lobster salad.
Try fitting a few of these calcium rich foods into your daily menu and the healthier new you will be thankful.
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