Calcium (children)

Where calcium comes from

• Dairy: milk, plain yogurt and cheese are the easiest sources for most families.
• Fish with soft bones: canned salmon or sardines, mashed well with the soft bones mixed in.
• Tofu made with calcium: the ingredient list names a calcium salt.
• Greens: broccoli, bok choy and kale, cooked until soft.
• Fortified foods: some plant drinks, cereals and breads have calcium added.

By age

From around 6 months, plain full-fat yogurt and pasteurized cheese can be part of meals, even though cow's milk as a drink waits until 12 months. After the first birthday, milk in an open cup with meals adds calcium too. Older children can get theirs from a mix of milk, yogurt, cheese and other calcium foods across the day. You don't need to count anything. Yogurt at breakfast, cheese at lunch and broccoli at dinner already puts a calcium food at every meal.

Easy ways to add it

• Stir plain yogurt into oatmeal.
• Melt grated cheese into scrambled eggs or pasta.
• Mash canned salmon into small patties.
• Add soft-cooked broccoli or bok choy to rice or noodles.
• Crumble calcium-set tofu into a stir-fry.

If your family is dairy-free

Choose an unsweetened plant drink with added calcium and vitamin D, and shake the carton well, since the added calcium can settle. Put a calcium food on the plate at most meals. Fortified soy drink is the plant drink closest to cow's milk. Ask your pediatrician which milk suits your child.

Read more

• Calcium and Vitamin D for Growing Kids
• Yogurt at 6 Months but Milk at 12: Why?

References

1. NHS: What to feed young children
2. CDC: Cow's Milk and Milk Alternatives