Smart Start - Lesson 4



	From the Chicken to the Egg! Some High Protein Snacks 1. Chicken or turkey slices 2. Low-fat/skim milk 3. Soy in some form 4. Low-fat cheese 5. Peanut butter 6. Hard-boiled egg

CALCIUM GOOD; SODA, WELL, FRANKLY, NOT SO GOOD

How many sodas do you drink a day? One? Two? Three? More? Consider this "drink for thought" when you wonder how much calcium you should be getting during your teen years. (A lot of this you can get in liquid form such as from drinking milk, not from swilling bucket loads of soda or diet soda.)

Bones grow and incorporate calcium most rapidly during your teen years, so hit the calcium often. Scientists agree that diets deficient in calcium during childhood and adolescence contribute to the development of osteoporosis (a disease that makes your bones brittle), which is not visible until later in life -- see "A Lack of Calcium Can Lead to ..." farther down this page for more info.

And sodas, believe it or not, just aren't that good for you -- see the Health Trek experiment "A Chicken Bone in Vinegar," which also appears farther down this page, for a rather graphic illustration of the dangers of too much soda, not enough milk. The best advice we can give: Cut down on sodas and get more calcium, please.

	STEP RIGHT UP, GET YOUR CALCIUM HERE! This list gives you a good idea of where you can get lots of calcium — take note. Want the scoop on calcium content in common foods and a simple way to calculate if you’re getting enough? Download our Are You Getting Enough Calcium? worksheet and plug in your numbers.

	From the Dairy Case Milk (nonfat, low fat, whole) Flavored (chocolate) milk Buttermilk Cheese Yogurt Parmesan cheese Yogurt-juice drink Cottage cheese Ricotta cheese		From the Freezer Section Ice cream and ice milk Frozen yogurt Ice cream bars Frozen pizza with real cheese Frozen cheese enchiladas Frozen waffles Calcium-fortified orange juice
	From the Grocery Shelf Dry milk powder Pudding Sardines, canned with bones Salmon, canned with bones Calcium-fortified cereal Mac and cheese Almonds Buttermilk pancake mix Dried beans		From the Produce Department Tofu (made with calcium) Broccoli Kale Okra Spinach Bok choy Turnip greens Mustard greens Collard greens

A LACK OF CALCIUM CAN LEAD TO ...

Osteoporosis -- A crippling bone disease. Bones become so brittle that they break easily.
Bone loss in the jaw -- This can lead to problems chewing, tooth loss and poorly fitting dentures. Not a pretty picture, huh?
Hypertension -- High blood pressure can lead to strokes and heart attacks in some people.

Related Risk Factors...

Age -- Risk increases as you age.
Gender -- Females are at a higher risk because they have less bone mass and because of changes involved in menopause.
Race -- Caucasian and Asian woman are at a higher risk.
Body size -- Small-boned and thin women are at a higher risk.
Low estrogen level -- Menopause, hysterectomy and excessive dieting increase risk of developing osteoporosis.
Diet -- If you drink a lot of soft drinks that are high in phosphorous, they upset the calcium/phosphorus ratio. When soft drinks replace milk in the diet, they can result in bone loss.
Healthy lifestyle -- Both smoking and excessive use of alcohol inhibit your body's ability to absorb calcium.
Family history -- Susceptibility to fracture may be hereditary.


		Based on good research, it is recommended that teens ages 9 to 18 get 1,300 milligrams of calcium daily.

An Excursion into What Would Happen if You Drank Soda Instead of Milk

Special Ingredients: You'll need a dry chicken or turkey wishbone, vinegar, a jar and a couple of days' time for this little do-it-yourself number to prove its point.

Put the bone in a jar of vinegar, then put it aside where it won't be disturbed by siblings, pets or parents for two days. This represents what would happen to your bones if you replaced milk with soda and/or drank 3 to 4 sodas a day, everyday.
Remove the wishbone from the vinegar and feel how soft and rubbery it now is. This is because the vinegar, an acid, has leached the calcium out of the bone. Increased acid levels throughout the body and the large amounts of sugars in sodas and some juices removes nutritious minerals such as calcium from bones, allowing the bones to become weak over time. This increases the risk of bone fractures and osteoporosis later in life. DON'T BECOME A RUBBERY CHICKEN BONE! Get your calcium!

GET MORE, MORE OFTEN

OK, this hasn't been a particularly gooey episode of Fear Factor or something, but a look at the importance of getting enough calcium, especially during your teen years, and drinking less soda. If you did the "mini-science experiment" on that rubbery chicken bone above, take a look at it again, give it a couple tugs or squeezes and tell yourself: "This will not be my fate." If you didn't do the experiment, take our word for it, you don't want your bones to end up this way! The point of it all? Think before you drink. Got calcium? If not, go get it!

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