Health In Motion

Promising a better bang for the buck, products called functional foods are increasingly filling grocery store aisles — and our fridges. Calcium fortified products are especially hot, and abound in orange juice – not to mention margarine, breakfast cereals, pancake mix and energy bars. Ever since food makers have introduced the idea, consumers seem to be loving it.

Given the choice between plain old juice or, for no extra cost, one fortified with bone-building calcium, most reach for the latter. Among Tropicana’s chilled juices, sales of the calcium-fortified varieties are growing at three times the rate of the others.

The problem with fruit juice is that it’s loaded with eight teaspoons of a relatively simple carbohydrate – fructose. Fruit juices are processed foods which are far too concentrated for us. If you have ever squeezed your own juice before, you know how many oranges it takes to create one glass of the fruit. So by drinking that 8-10 ounce glass of juice, you are eating the equivalent of many pieces of fruit with their inherent sugars, but without the fiber to slow down absorption! An 8-oz glass of orange juice has 120 calories and 0 g of fiber; an orange has only 60 calories and 3 g of fiber.

And while consuming calcium-enhanced drinks would seem helpful, it still will only further promote the concept that we should be consuming too much concentrated fruit juice. Fructose is a form of sugar which if taken out of moderation, contributes to major distortions of insulin balance which leads to hormone and neurotransmitter shifts, increasing a child’s risk for ear infections, ADHD and allergies.

So while filling an important niche, manufacturers also are contributing to the diabetes epidemic and other sugar diseases.

The American Academy of Pediatrics Guidelines on Fruit Juice is:

1. Fruit juice should not be given to infants younger than 6 months of age.
2. After 6 months, children should not get juice from bottles or cups that allow them to consume the beverage too easily.
3. Infants should not get fruit juice at bedtime.
4. Children between 1 and 6 should limit fruit juice consumption to between four to six ounces per day.
5. Children between 7 and 18 should limit fruit juice consumption to between eight and 12 ounces a day.
6. All children should be encouraged to eat whole fruits.

Source: Pediatrics Vol. 107 No. 5 May 2001, pp. 1210-1213

Calcium inhibitors

Generally it is not that a person is not eating enough calcium – it is one of the most widely occurring nutrients in our diet. It is more the case that lifestyle choices and dietary habits might interfering with the body’s ability to absorb calcium. Things that inhibit the absorption of calcium are

• Coffee, soft drinks and diuretics
• Excesses of protein, especially meat
• Refined sugar or too much of any concentrated sweetener or sweet flavoured food
• Alcohol, cannabis, cigarettes and other intoxicants
• Too little or too much exercise
• Excess salt
• The Solanum (deadly nightshade) genus of vegetables – tomatoes in particular, but also potatoes, aubergines, peppers, courgettes – they all contain the calcium inhibitor solanine.

Source: Haelan Centre (from Paul Pitchford’s book, “Healing With Whole Foods“)

Raw, unpasteurized milk as a great natural source for calcium:

Finding an authentic raw milk source, from pasture fed cows, is probably the single best source of calcium you can get, and an outstanding source of a variety of additional nutrients. Of course, sheep or goat milk will also work well.

Pasteurized dairy is an extremely poor choices as a calcium source. The commercial variety contains traces of hormones, steroids, and antibiotics. Pasteurization destroys all valuable enzymes (lactase for the assimilation of lactose; galactase for the assimilation of galactose; phosphatase for the assimilation of calcium). The human pancreas is not always able to produce these enzymes; over-stress of the pancreas can lead to diabetes and other diseases.

Some other good calcium sources are:

· Turnip greens – 1 cooked cup has 450 mg

· Yogurt, plain, low fat - 8 oz has 415 mg

· Sardines in oil (with bones) – 3 oz has 370 mg

· Collard greens – 1 cooked cup has 300 mg

· Spinach, frozen, Boiled – 1 cup has 291 mg

· Yogurt, plain – 8 oz has 275 mg

· Chinese Mustard Greens, cooked – has 212 mg per 0.5 cups

· Blackeye peas, boiled – 1 cup has 211 mg

· Kale – I cooked cup has 200 mg

· Canned salmon with bones – 3 ounces has 181 mg

· Collards – 1/2 cup cooked has 179 mg

· Broccoli – 1 cup cooked has 170 mg

· Baked beans, canned – 1 cup has 154 mg

· Amaranth – 1 cooked cup has 150 mg

· Cottage cheese, 1% milk fat – 1 cup has 138 mg

· Navy beans – 1 cup cooked has 128 mg

· Turnips – 1/2 cup cooked has 124 mg

· Green peas, boiled - 1 cup has 94 mg

· Sesame seeds – one tablespoon has 90 mg

· Chinese Cabbage, cooked – 0.5 cup has 79 mg

· Oranges – 1 cup has 72 mg

· Almonds – 1 oz (24 nuts) have 70 mg

· Egg – 1 medium has 55 mg

Getting a healthy amount of sunshine daily is your best source for vitamin D. Calcium and vitamin D work hand in hand for good health. Oral vitamin D is far inferior to your body producing it after being exposed to sufficient sunshine. In the winter months, the best source of vitamin D for most people is a high-quality cod liver oil.

Increasing your intake of vegetables, ideally through juicing, increases vitamin K intake, which serves as the biological glue that plugs calcium into your bone matrix.

Everything in moderation is a good rule of thumb, but if you follow this list of natural foods, you’re on the right path to getting your daily dose of calcium.