Calcium plays a very crucial role in our body. It is the most important mineral of our body. a 60 kg of adult’s body consists of 1 kg of only calcium in the form of the skeletal system. Calcium plays various crucial roles in our body. Calcium salts help in the mineralisation of the bones and teeth and calcium ions help in clotting of blood, nerve conduction, muscle contraction, enzyme regulation and membrane permeability.

ABSORPTION OF CALCIUM

The absorption of calcium from our diet varies greatly at different stages of our life. In pre-pubertythe total calcium absorbed from our daily diet is 28% while it increases upto 34% during puberty period and again starts decreasing during adulthood when it is only 25%. It doubles only during pregnancy period and remains only 4% in people of age more than 50 years.

The absorption of calcium varies greatly because there are many factors responsible behind its absorption. Some increase and others decrease its absorption. Let’s have a quick look at the recommended daily intake of calcium as prescribed by ICAR.

AMOUNT OF CALCIUM REQUIRED BY DIFFERENT PERSONS PERFORMING DIFFERENT TYPES OF ACTIVITIES

The absorption of calcium varies greatly from food to food. it is highly absorbed from dairy based foods and may decrease from green leafy vegetables. It is highest in non-veg food but somewhat less in veg foods. Let’s have a deep insight into the various calcium rich sources from all of the major food groups.

CALCIUM RICH FOODS

1. CEREALS – Among cereals, Ragi secures the first position for being richest in calcium. Next comes- rice bran, wholewheat flour and then bajra. All of these cereals have some amount of calcium in them but the above mentioned are the richest sources of calcium.
2. PULSES AND LEGUMES – Pulses and legumes are far much richer in calcium as compared to cereals. Major pulses are – whole horse gram, rajmah, soyabean, whole bengal gram and black gram dal.
3. GREEN LEAFY VEGETABLES – Green leafy vegetables varies from region to region. Fetid Cassia (dried) is the richest source of calcium among green leafy vegetables. Rape leaves (dried), Nerringi, Colocasia leaves, curry leaves, Amaranth, Knol-khol etc comes later in the list. But as i said, knowledge of these G.L.Vs differs greatly from one part of India to another. So see, here is a list of some common G.L.Vs which also contain substantial amount of calcium like – turnips, cauliflower, spinach, bathua etc.
4. OTHER VEGETABLES – Lotus stem, especially dry is a rich source of calcium. Others are field beans and pumpkin flowers.
5. NUTS AND OILSEEDS – Nuts are small nutrition packed packets. Most of them have substantial amounts of calcium. Among nuts and oilseeds, gingelly seeds are the richest source of calcium. Next comes mustard seeds, coconut (dry), garden cress seeds, niger seeds and sunflower seeds. List is long but all the above mentioned, have visibly fair amounts of calcium.
6. CONDIMENTS AND SPICES – No doubt, we use only a pinch of the spices in our meals but still they have large amounts of calcium by weight, as compared to many other foods. Poppy seeds and Omum seeds are the richest sources of calcium in this respect.
7. FISHES AND NON-VEG FOOD SOURCES – Among fishes, all the dried fishes serve as a rich source of calcium. Examples include – Mutjella, Bhagon, Chingri, Chela, Shrimp etc. Crabs and ducks also enrich this list. If we talk about non-veg food then, snail and mutton musselsmust be the choice in respect of fair amounts of calcium.
8. MILK AND MILK PRODUCTS – Milk and milk products are the most reliable sources of calcium because calcium from such sources is readily absorbed by the body. This is so, because, calcium in such foods is bound with phosphorous which helps in the absorption of calcium.
9. SUGARS – All sugars except jaggery do not provide with any noticeable nutrients. Amount of calcium supplied from jaggery also varies depending on the source from which it is made. Jaggery made from coconut palm comes at the top of the list, followed by – sago palm jaggery, date palm jaggery etc.

FACTORS (DIETARY AS WELL AS PHYSIOLOGICAL) THAT INHIBIT THE ABSORPTION OF CALCIUM

1. Foods containing phytates and oxalates like husk of cereals, nuts, seeds, legumes, have poor absorption of calcium present in them. This is due to the reason that calcium in these foods form insoluble phytate complexes, this decreases its absorption.
2. Some food combinations like iron rich foods along with calcium rich foods , hinders the absorption of both calcium and iron.
3. With age, especially in menopausal women, the rate of calcium loss from the body is three times as compared to calcium absorption. The calcium absorbed from the daily food is only 4% in such women. So it is advised to menopausal women to limit their protein intake as this will further limit their calcium absorption.