Good Calcium Sources – the Green Smoothie

Where do you get your Calcium?

How about a green smoothie for strong teeth and bones?

Calcium is the most abundant mineral in the human body yet most people just don’t get enough.

While many people still think that dairy is a good source of calcium, we do NOT recommend consuming dairy and especially recommend against adding it to green smoothies. While it’s true that dairy contains calcium, because of its acidifying effect on our bodies, for one reason, dairy can result in a net LOSS of calcium due to the fact that calcium is leached out of our bones in order to restore the pH balance. (For more info visit NotMilk.com.)

Consuming calcium rich foods is only part of what is required. In order for our body to actually make use of any calcium we ingest, certain nutrients must be present in order to help with its absorption. More specifically, nutrients such as magnesium, potassium, phosphorous and Vitamin D. Can you guess what natural whole foods are high in calcium and contain an abundance of these nutrients? You got it… greens!

Below is a list of excellent sources of usable calcium. The percentage listed after each green item is the percent of the USDA Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) in 100 grams (~3.5 ounces). For most greens that is the equivalent of about 1-2 cups depending on the density of the green.

GREENS

Bok Choy 10%

Parsley 13%

Turnip Greens 18%

Mustard Greens 11%

Collard Greens 14%

Dandelion Greens 18%

Kale 13%

Spinach 10%

FRUIT

Blackberries 4%/cup

Oranges 5%/medium orange

Dates 6%/cup

Grapefruit 3%/cup

Mango 2% per

Papaya 3.5%/cup

Raspberries 3%/cup

Strawberries 2%/cup

Common additions to Green Smoothies

Chia seeds 18%/ounce

Seseme seeds 27%/ounce (not hulled)

Green Smoothie Calcium
To put this into perspective… if you made a green smoothie with Kale, Spinach, Orange and added some dates and chia seed you would have about 1/3 of your total RDA of calcium.

Not only that but you would also have ALL the nutrients needed for calcium absorption in a single serving! Of course we are only talking about calcium at the moment. Remember green smoothies are abundant in protein, iron, folate, anti-oxidants, Vitamin C and a whole lot more vitamins minerals and phyto-nutrients. Two or three green smoothies a day could provide you with 100% of the RDA of usable calcium!