Great teeth start with great nutrition.
And, we all know how
important Calcium is for growing bones and teeth.
What is less known is that many really great
sources of calcium are both non-dairy AND can make our kids meals more
flavorful and yummy.
Yummy and Teeth Friendly Calcium Rich Meal Additions
From Salads to deserts-- nuts and seeds add a special touch
to the tastiness of every dish. The fun part for teeth is that some are also
VERY rich in calcium.
#1 Source of rich calcium per serving size is Sesame Seeds
Sesame seeds provide the HIGHEST LEVEL of calcium when they
are roasted or dried -- 989mg of calcium in a 100g serving, or 277mg to an ounce, which is 88mg per tablespoon.
Sesame Butter
(Tahini) provides about half the amount of calcium with 426mg of calcium
to the 100g serving, 119mg in an ounce, and 64mg per tbs. It tends NOT to be a
kid favorite due to a slightly bitter aftertaste.
Another Great Seed Source for Calcium is Flax Seeds
One of the easiest to use and “hide” (if necessary) are Flax
seeds. When ground they can go into any meatloaf or meatball as a filler, stand
alone as hot cereal or add some nutty flavor to shakes. Any baked good can be
enhanced and they can even add some crunch to salad.
Flax seeds provide 255mg in a 100g serving, 428mg to
the cup, and 26mg per tablespoon.
*NOTE!! Refined flax seed oil does NOT provide
calcium. You have to go for the seed itself for all that calcium goodness.
Sometimes You Feel Like A Nut – Use these Nuts To Help Your Teeth
Almonds
Almonds are a great source of calcium whether dry roasted or
made into butter. Almonds will provide 266mg of calcium in a 100g serving,
367mg to a cup, and 74mg per ounce (approx 22 Almonds).
Brazil Nuts
BIG BIG BIG nuts and slightly woody tasting these selenium
and calcium rich nuts can add personality when chopped and added to any salad,
desert or ground and added to meats or cereal as filler. Two ounces of Brazil
nuts (12 nuts) have 90 mg.
Yummy and Teeth Friendly Calcium Rich Spices
The top two calcium rich spices are great thrown into soups
and punching up meat flavors!
Dried savory - 2132mg of calcium in a 100g serving or 85mg per
tablespoon
Celery seed - 124mg of
calcium per tablespoon
Remember the song “parsley sage rosemary and thyme…”? This
classic flavor profile also gives a boost to the calcium content of any meal.
Sage - 21mg of calcium per tablespoon
Rosemary (dried) - 38mg per tbsp
Thyme (dried)- 57mg per tbsp
NOT just for pickles, dill gives a great little zing to salad and sauces. Give it a try!
Dill (dried)- 53mg per tbsp
Fruit It Up For Yummy and Teeth Friendly Calcium
Papaya
Papaya tastes best served very ripe and one medium papaya has 73 mg of calcium.
Oranges
Always a favorite for Vitamin C and yumminess, one medium
orange has 52 mg calcium.
Bananas
One medium banana has just
6 mg of calcium. BUT, bananas
pack a double punch in the calcium boosting power. They are one of the “kid
favorite” foods naturally high in inulin -- a
carbohydrate that can be only partially digested. A 2001 pilot study at the
Children's Nutrition Research Center at Baylor College of Medicine found that
inulin helped growing kids absorb more calcium and build more bone.
* NOTE Speaking of inulin Eating more asparagus, onions and
garlic can also help provide inulin to boost your kids calcium absorption. Researchers believe that eating foods rich
in inulin -- such as onions, artichokes, bananas, wheat, rye, barley and chicory
-- could help boost calcium absorption.
With kids fun and yummy ALWAYS work best. As parents we have
to pick our fights. Luckily teeth and bone supporting nutrition does not have
to be one of those. By automatically adding in a good variety of these calcium
boosters to your daily meals-- you won’t have to work out the math on ‘minimum daily
requirements’. Have fun playing and blending in these yummy calcium options to
your family meals.
And Keep Smiling!
Phoenix Kids Dentist Dr Karen Chu – Articles To Inform and Support Healthy Smiles
Dr Karen Chu is a Phoenix Kids Dentist with a passion to help parents feel comfortable taking an active and interactive role with their kid’s dentists, dental care and daily dental habits and routines.
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