I apologize for the delay in posts (one whole week!). When my husband’s back started to heal up I started coming down with a bug that I am still in the process of fighting off. I hope to be back to more regular posting soon.
We have always been told that dairy is a necessary part of our diet in order to take in adequate calcium. The same people who drill this into our heads also tell us that we should eat dairy that has been pasteurized and skimmed – both processes that drastically decrease the amount of calcium you are able to absorb.
The problem is most commercial dairy is difficult to digest and can even create severe reactions for some individuals. I do believe that raw dairy is an incredibly healthy food, but not everyone can tolerate it. Others avoid it for periods of time in order to heal their guts from years of abuse.
I took my toddler off of raw milk a couple of weeks ago in order to encourage healing in his gut. The first thing my husband asked when I brought this up was “Is he going to be getting enough calcium?” A great question, and one I had to do some research on.
After researching I found that certain foods we were already eating and therefore worked well for our family:
photo credit There is so much mixed information out there about seafood. Some say that it is the healthiest form of protein because it is "low in saturated fat" and high in omega-3 essential fatty acids. Of course I don’t really buy into the idea that saturated fat is the villain (here’s why). So that…
We are still on GAPS over here so that means no bread, grains, and a lot of other things. And it seems to be helping. I wouldn’t be totally forthcoming, though, if I didn’t tell you that I can’t wait until we are eating grains again so that I can experiment some more with sourdough…
NOTE: Gardening and preserving is keeping me pretty busy these days. A few articles that bear repeating will fill in the gaps on the days when the to-do list is too long. This post was originally published in July 2009. After mentioning that vegetable oils were bad I was recently asked “which fats can I…
Milk kefir is one of the first fermented foods that our family began eating solely for the way it made us feel. We already loved the flavors of yogurt, kombucha, and sourdough; but milk kefir was definitely out of our normal flavor range. Since then I have experimented with it for a few years and…
One of the things about fermented vegetables that continues to astound me is just how useful they are. Traditionally Fermented Foods launches next month and looking through the Vegetable Chapter, I find a few themes. One is that I really want people to know how delicious fermented vegetables can be. There are a bunch of…
If you’re interested, sign up for an $85 US Wellness Meats Giveaway. Also, don’t forget that you can Learn To Cook Real Foods simply and affordably (just $10/class!) by enrolling in this online class. Enrollment closes May 31st! Today’s real food journal is brought to us by Kara of Taste is Trump. On her blog…
14 Comments
Great post! I am glad you are posting about the less-than-stellar truth about commercial dairy products.
I hope you get to feeling totally better again soon!
Why is it that there’s only calcium in cooked spinach? We don’t eat a lot of the other greens listed (not til I can start gardening again) but eat tons of raw spinach in our green smoothies. My 2 year old and I both react to dairy and have yet to find a source of raw dairy here (were in Canada).
thank you for this post! i always tell people when i ask that leafy greens are the best source of absorbable calcium, and now i can throw some statistics into my conversation!
Gotta praise you for posting this! My son has protein allergies so milk and soy are off-limits. I am always worrying about him and his calcium intake.
Great list, thanks! I remember being so pleased to learn that figs and carob were both sources of calcium, as I love them both! I’m surprised dandelion greens aren’t on that list–they’re a really good source, as is seaweed (eat that sushi!). 🙂
Thanks for this great reminder. I’m going to add a few to my grocery list this week. My kids drink only a bit of soymilk and we don’t eat dairy so alternate calcium sources are important.
I hope you are feeling better. We’ve been down all week. First one then the other and soon to be me. I’ve had lots of time to declutter and organize as we haven’t been leaving the house.
Don’t forget one of my favorite (and free!) sources of calcium – Dandelion Greens! We don’t use any chemicals in our lawn so I just love picking from this super low maintenance food source in my own yard.
I just found this website and it looks great. beautiful design!
Thank you for posting this. I’m currently working at remineralizing my teeth (enamel loss/discoloration is a lesser known effect of gluten sensitivity)…I have a whole battle plan going on to which I keep adding my latest reads/findings.
Nourishing herbal infusions are also a good source of assimilable calcium (how much depends on which herb(s) you choose).
Great post! I am glad you are posting about the less-than-stellar truth about commercial dairy products.
I hope you get to feeling totally better again soon!
Amy Ellen’s last blog post..Healthy Children’s Lunches
Why is it that there’s only calcium in cooked spinach? We don’t eat a lot of the other greens listed (not til I can start gardening again) but eat tons of raw spinach in our green smoothies. My 2 year old and I both react to dairy and have yet to find a source of raw dairy here (were in Canada).
Thanks.
Amy @ Muddy Boots’s last blog post..Works For Me Wednesday: laundry
thank you for this post! i always tell people when i ask that leafy greens are the best source of absorbable calcium, and now i can throw some statistics into my conversation!
Gotta praise you for posting this! My son has protein allergies so milk and soy are off-limits. I am always worrying about him and his calcium intake.
Thanks for the resource.
🙂
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sometimes a blog break is nice. hope you are feeling better.
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Great list, thanks! I remember being so pleased to learn that figs and carob were both sources of calcium, as I love them both! I’m surprised dandelion greens aren’t on that list–they’re a really good source, as is seaweed (eat that sushi!). 🙂
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Great post. Makes me feel good about the sardines that I have every so often!
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Excellent list. It’s easy to forget that there’s so very many options to get adequate nutrition from whole foods. I love my raw milk, though.
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This is a great lot of info! Thanks! I was looking for this not too long ago! Thanks!
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Thanks for this great reminder. I’m going to add a few to my grocery list this week. My kids drink only a bit of soymilk and we don’t eat dairy so alternate calcium sources are important.
I hope you are feeling better. We’ve been down all week. First one then the other and soon to be me. I’ve had lots of time to declutter and organize as we haven’t been leaving the house.
nina’s last blog post..A bit more decluttering…
Don’t forget one of my favorite (and free!) sources of calcium – Dandelion Greens! We don’t use any chemicals in our lawn so I just love picking from this super low maintenance food source in my own yard.
Pampered Mom’s last blog post..New Curtains for the Craft Room
I just found this website and it looks great. beautiful design!
Thank you for posting this. I’m currently working at remineralizing my teeth (enamel loss/discoloration is a lesser known effect of gluten sensitivity)…I have a whole battle plan going on to which I keep adding my latest reads/findings.
Nourishing herbal infusions are also a good source of assimilable calcium (how much depends on which herb(s) you choose).
Alchemille’s last blog post..Puffed Grains and Breakfast Cereals, should we eat them?