Teen Girls and Calcium

“I love the ‘Got Milk?’ ads,” says Claire Spellberg, a seventh-grader in Chevy Chase, Md. “I just don’t like the taste of milk.”

The 13-year-old soccer player is not alone. Only 10 percent of preteen and teenage girls get the 1,300 milligrams of calcium they need daily to build healthy bones, despite the popular advertising campaign backed by the U.S. dairy industry since 1993, serving up milk mustaches on dozens of celebrities, from soccer star Mia Hamm to supermodel Kate Moss.

According to a University of Maryland study published in 2006, teen girls average only 814 milligrams of calcium per day during a critical period when they are building peak bone mass. Medical experts say calcium deficiency during teen years puts girls at greater risk later in life for the brittle bones and bone fractures associated with osteoporosis, a condition characterized by deterioration of bone tissue.

One culprit is the current drinking habits of teen girls, who are opting for a daily average of 17 ounces of carbonated soft drinks, while drinking only 7 ounces of milk per day, according to the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a nonprofit nutrition advocacy group in Washington, D.C.

That’s bad news for bones. A Harvard University study conducted in 2000 showed that teen girls who drink cola increase their risk of bone fractures by 3 to 5 percent while they are still young.

Slowly, schools are replacing sodas in vending machines with milk and other healthier options. “It took 30 years for a large proportion of people to give up smoking. I think this is more or less like that,” says Grace Wyshak, associate professor at the Harvard School of Public Health and author of the study.

For bones’ sake, preteens and teenage girls need:

• 1,300 milligrams of calcium each day. (One 8-ounce glass of milk contains 300 milligrams of calcium.)
• Vitamin D to help the body absorb calcium. (Milk is fortified with Vitamin D, and sunlight also is an excellent source.)
• Weight-bearing exercise, including dancing, walking, running, soccer, tennis, tae kwon do and basketball.
• A balanced diet. Dieting and eating disorders weaken bones.

To reach a full day’s supply of calcium, teens should consume:

• Low-fat dairy products, including milk, cheese and yogurt.
• Calcium-fortified foods, including orange juice, cereal and some breads. For instance, three-fourths of a cup of calcium-fortified Total cereal with one cup of skim milk provides a full day’s supply of calcium.
• Vegetables such as kale, collard greens, bok choy, cooked dried beans and rhubarb.
• Other good calcium sources such as canned salmon or sardines (with bones).

Lactose-intolerant girls may be able to tolerate yogurt, hard cheeses and even small glasses of milk. Some milk and dairy products are made with the enzyme lactase, which helps those with lactose intolerance digest dairy foods. Lactase supplements also are available at drugstores. H

Story by Amy Eskind of Nashville, Tenn.

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