Foods to Have:
Hard cheese 1.5 ounces
Kefir 8 ounces
Milk 8 ounces
Ricotta cheese ½ cup
Yogurt 8 ounces
Also consider: Cottage cheese, sour cream, ice cream
What are the best dairy foods?
Dairy is the main food group that is known for building and maintaining strong bones and reducing the risk for osteoporosis, as well as having other positive health effects. This list has the top dairy picks that are the most nutritious plus with added health benefits.
The intake of dairy products is especially important during childhood and adolescence, when bone mass is being built. Dietary recommendations found in the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans support the inclusion of low- and nonfat dairy products to not only improve bone health for children and adults, but also to reduce the risk of diabetes, high blood pressure, and cardiovascular disease.
Low-fat and fat-free milk, cheese, and yogurt provide nine essential nutrients: calcium; niacin; phosphorus; potassium; protein; riboflavin; and vitamins A, D, and B12. Diets rich in potassium may help to maintain healthy blood pressure, and dairy products, especially yogurt, fluid milk, and soy milk, provide potassium. Vitamin D functions in the body to maintain proper levels of calcium and phosphorous, thereby helping to build and maintain bones. Vitamin D–fortified milks and soy milks are good sources of this nutrient; other sources, when vitamin D–fortified, include yogurt and ready-to-eat breakfast cereals.
When comparing different cow's milk—whole vs. 2% vs. skim, and so on—there is no difference in calcium, vitamin D, and other nutrients. These are not skimmed away with the fat; the only difference is that you're giving your body more calories and unhealthy fat when you choose whole over 2% milk.
How much is enough?
You may be familiar with the slogan "3-a-day." Dairy products are the primary source of calcium in the American diet, and consuming three cups or the equivalent of dairy products per day, if you are aged nine or older, can help meet your daily calcium needs. Those three low- or nonfat dairy servings have also been found to play a role in maintaining a healthy weight and promote healthy blood pressure control, among other health benefits!
Source: MyPlate.gov
Did you know?
Domestication of a wild relative of today's cow, known as an aurochs, is thought to have begun back in 8000 to 6000 BC in the Fertile Crescent. But it wasn't until 1624 that the first cows arrived in America, in Plymouth, Massachusetts.
Did you know?
Flavored milk is often targeted as a contributor toward childhood obesity, though research to date does not support this premise. In fact, studies show that:
- Kids drink more milk when it's flavored.
- No nutrients are lost when flavoring is added to white milk—it still contains all of the nine essential nutrients that milk is known for!
- Drinking low-fat or fat-free flavored milk helps fill the nutrient void that kids are experiencing today—namely, not getting enough of calcium, potassium, and magnesium as well as vitamin D.
- Lastly, research shows that kids who drink flavored milk meet more of their nutritional needs without consuming more added sugar, fat, or calories than non-milk drinkers. And kids who drink flavored milk are not heavier than those kids who don't! Besides, low-fat chocolate milk is the most popular milk choice in schools—not offering it only limits kids' choices for healthy beverages.
Low-fat chocolate milk may be a preferred beverage among athletes, too, as studies are showing that drinking chocolate milk between exercise sessions improves recovery and enables athletes to perform longer until they became fatigued. Low-fat chocolate milk is an excellent source of calcium, phosphorus, and riboflavin, and a good source of vitamins A and D.
Hard Cheese
If you are looking for the most calcium in the smallest package, cheese is your best bet. And not all cheese is created equal in the calcium department. Hard cheeses contain the most calcium, followed by semihard, soft, then fresh. The calcium in cheese helps relieve PMS symptoms, which is really good news! A Finnish study found that cheese-eating adolescent girls had stronger bones compared to than those who did not. Some hard cheese varieties, such as Parmigiano-Reggiano, are not only rich in protein and calcium but also possess prebiotic and probiotic properties; and one and a half ounces of aged Parmesan cheese is an excellent source of calcium (500 mg!), phosphorus, and protein.
It takes ten pounds of cow's milk to make one pound of cheese!
Kefir
If you haven't tried it before, kefir is a kind of a cross between yogurt and milk, with a pleasant creamy consistency and a sweet, tangy taste. There are friendly bacteria that form naturally when kefir is made that help promote healthy digestion. Kefiran, a plant nutrient that is the subject of much research, is produced by the bacteria Lactobacillus kefira-nofaciens, found in kefir grains. In addition to its digestive benefits, kefir also has been found to help bone health by providing 25 percent of the RDA for vitamin D and 30 percent for calcium. A recent study also found potential cancer-slowing power with drinking kefir. The Journal of Cancer Management and Research featured a study in which researchers found that kefir inhibited proliferation of specific cancer cells. Kefir is also thought to enhance immune function, reduce inflammation, and lower blood pressure and cholesterol.
Milk
Milk does a body good and apparently in more ways than just protecting our bone structure. In a meta-analysis of nineteen different studies that looked at milk and dairy consumption and its relationship to colon cancer risk, those men and women who consumed the higher end of dairy (three or more servings per day) had the lowest risk for colon cancer.
Ricotta Cheese
The whey protein in ricotta cheese has been demonstrated to be beneficial in lowering high blood pressure that could lead to stroke. Fermented whey proteins have been found to reduce the harmful bacteria H. pylori, which may benefit digestive health. An animal study found that the whey proteins in cheese helped reduce inflammation associated with colitis. Also, whey is a valuable protein for increasing lean muscle mass.
Yogurt
Of all dairy products, yogurt is most concentrated in both potassium and calcium. The combination of these two minerals is particularly beneficial in preventing bone loss. Relatively new to the yogurt scene, Greek yogurt is another great option for getting a serving of dairy. Low-fat Greek yogurt is an excellent source of calcium (up to 30 percent of the DV), phosphorus, protein (upward of 23 g per cup!), riboflavin (up to 30 percent of the DV), vitamin B12, and zinc. It is a good source of magnesium, pantothenic acid, and potassium. Besides its amazing nutrition profile, yogurt has some incredible health benefits, too. Making yogurt part of a regular diet has been shown to enhance immune function, promote healthy digestion, and improve oral health. In addition, studies have shown that eating a low-fat variety of dairy products lowers the incidence of type 2 diabetes. A study of 82,076 post-menopausal women found that those who consumed low-fat dairy products had a much lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes, especially if those women were obese. Even more amazing was that there was even a stronger association for those women who ate yogurt with reducing the risk for diabetes!