People that do not eat dairy foods or drink milk have to work harder to maintain an adequate calcium intake to avoid a calcium deficiency and ward off conditions like osteoporosis. Non-dairy calcium sources included fortified orange juice and breakfast cereals. Soya milk is also a calcium-fortified beverage so I would try to include these items in your diet.

It is also important that you include sources of vitamin D in your diet as vitamin D helps the body to absorb calcium. Vitamin D can also be found in foods such as oily fish. Eating salmon, tuna, sardines, mackerel, halibut or herring once a week will help you meet your vitamin D requirements. Other dietary sources of vitamin D include dairy products; margarine; eggs; chicken liver; soya milk and rice milk. The sun is the best source of vitamin D and a few minutes of sunlight a day will enable the body to increase vitamin D levels.  10ug or 1000 international units (iu) is the recommended dose of vitamin D for adults.

For further information on how to increase your calcium intake please read our new booklet, Beat the Break: A Guide to Osteoporosis and Fall Prevention.

If you have any questions you would like answered please e-mail Noeleen Cronin on info@homeinstead.ie. Noleen is trained as a nurse and specialised in elder care before joining Home Instead Senior Care.

For further information on elder care issues and to keep up to date with Home Instead Senior Care news please click on the following link: http://www.homeinstead.ie/keep_in_touch.aspx.