Calcium without cows? How to get your daily dose

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Susan Blum, MD, MPH, founder of the Blum Center for Health, www.blumcenterforhealth.com

The dairy industry would like you to believe that osteoporosis is a dairy-deficiency disease. But if you’re eating a rich vegetarian-based diet, you’re going to get a lot of calcium. Tofu is a really good source, as are Brazil nuts and almonds (about 313 mg), flax seeds and sesame seeds, and leafy greens, especially turnip and mustard greens, collards, and kale (90.5 mg).

My main argument against dairy has to do with eating an alkaline diet. The most acid-producing foods are all animal. And to contend with all the acid, your body has to buffer it somehow. We know that people that have a more acidic diet have an increased risk of osteoporosis, and one theory is that the calcium is released from the bone to buffer the acid. So, for the bones, it turns out dairy is not great after all. —Nina Pearlman