Find Calcium Outside Dairy Case

Calcium: This dairy case favorite is essential to build and maintain healthy bones and to prevent osteoporosis.

A daily calcium intake of 1,200 milligrams is generally recommended for men and women over age 50.

While milk, yogurt and cheese are excellent sources of calcium, there also are other sources.

The April issue of Mayo Clinic Health Letter offers these suggestions:

Fortified foods: Look for fruit juice, soy milk and even some cereals with added calcium. An eight-ounce glass of juice can have 300 milligrams of calcium.
Fish and shellfish: Just three ounces of sardines (including bones) canned in oil and drained provides 324 milligrams of calcium. The same amount of pink canned salmon (with bones) provides 181 milligrams, and canned shrimp has 50 milligrams.
Tofu: A four-ounce serving has about 130 milligrams of calcium. Four ounces of tofu processed with calcium salts can have as much as 300 milligrams of calcium.
Vegetables: One cup of rhubarb (sweetened and previously frozen) has 348 milligrams of calcium. Other good sources are spinach, turnip greens and kale.