You should listen to your mom. Adequate calcium level is extremely important for your overall health, not just for your bones. You can also get a blood test for ionized calcium. Please note it has to be ionized calcium because the total calcium level is not a good indicator.

Well, of course a personal anecdote is not evidence, but I'm gonna tell you my story, anyway, mostly cuz I just had a bone density test done yesterday, and I'm still super excited about it!

I've been strict Paleo for 6 months. No dairy at all, not even in "cheats".

I just got my bone density test done, and I was off the charts for bone density. The tech said that she rarely sees those numbers. She was so surprised that she quizzed me on what I'm doing.

Now, it's possible that I always had high bone density, but I don't think so, cuz I drank a lot of Diet Coke, rarely got sun, didn't do weight bearing exercise, hated greens, and didn't even eat much dairy.

I also recently found out that I have a casein intolerance, and probably won't be able to eat dairy for the rest of my life, so I was feeling worried about osteoporosis (foolishly, because there are lots of healthy populations in the world who don't eat dairy), so finding out that I have awesome bone density was a huge relief.

Calcium supplementation is linked to greater cardiovascular incidents.

http://www.theheart.org/article/1108009.do

There is some argument that Vitamin D is the key factor. Also, it is much more about the balance between calcium and magnesium that could cause many of the "low calcium" issues.

Calcium is not the only thing we need for strong bones. Like someone else has pointed out, magnesium is very important, as are vitamins D3 and K2. Vitamin K2 is HUGE for bone and dental health and you rarely hear anything about it.

See, the thing is, it's not so much how much calcium we're taking in, but where it's going and what our bodies are doing with it. Think about it -- how is it that we have a society that is AWASH in calcium (milk, yogurt, cheese, ice cream, supplements), yet we have women (and men!) whose bones and teeth are falling apart? You can suck down calcium 'til the cows come home (no pun intended), but if you don't have the necessary cofactors and other players that tell the body what to do with it, you're going to get into serious physiological trouble. Vitamin K2 basically acts like a traffic cop. It directs calcium into the bones and teeth where we want it, and keeps it OUT of the soft tissue, where we don't want it (our blood vessels, joints, and kidneys). The two proteins that do this -- calcitonin and matrix GLA protein, both require vitamins A & D to be made, but they absolutely must have K2 to be activated. (And the modern diet is WOEFULLY low in K2...best sources are organs and fat from grass-fed ruminant animals, pastured chicken eggs, etc.)

There's some debate about the acid/alkaline issue with regard to calcium. (Some people claim if you're too acidic [blood], your body will leach calcium out of your bones and teeth to buffer it.) This might be true, but even if you're eating a fair amount of animal protein (which tends to be acidic upon digestion), I would argue that if you're consuming lots of vegetables (specifically leafy greens) you'll balance out just fine. (Never mind the fact that GRAINS are highly acidic upon digestion as well, and if you're avoiding those, you're avoiding probably the biggest acid load in the modern diet. Dropping the "hearthealthywholegrains" is probably one of the best things anyone can do to stave off osteoporosis.)

As for us "needing dairy" for calcium, ask your mom how it's possible that archeologists can dig up human/humanoid fossils that are thousands of years old, and the bones and teeth are intact, yet we have 40 and 50 year old women whose bones are full of holes... Seems like our pre-dairy ancestors had no problem maintaining their bone health.

Sorry to go on like that. You just caught me at an opportune time. I just gave a talk about this stuff, so it's fresh in my mind.

Chris Masterjohn on vitamin K2...fascinating stuff: http://www.westonaprice.org/fat-soluble-activators/x-factor-is-vitamin-k2

P.S. I have nothing against dairy, personally. I eat it myself (full fat organic, obviously, and grass-fed when I can get it). But I know we certainly don't need it for bone health.

Nettles are really high in calcium too. 1 cup has 428mg of calcium.

Supplements can be helpful to health, obviously eating what you need is the best way, but that isn't always possible. The type of supplements and quality are the most important factors when choosing one. For example, I wanted to get a magnesium supplement and went to a site I have bought stuff from in the past. The best selling magnesium one was cheap and fulfilled the recommended daily allowance, but it was magnesium oxide. Very little gets absorbed into the body and if I had bought that supplement I would have been wasting my money and getting no health benefit.

To make the water murkier some supplements work better if you take them with another. For example vitamin D is essential for helping your body process calcium.

Even if you are skeptical of doctors remember they have 8+ years of schooling and training. They understand the human body to a degree that the layman doesn't. If she is concerned about your calcium intake I would listen, she knows the role it plays in our body and why we need it. Although it is harder to take when its a parent talking, I think we can all attest to that.:)

I use this site a lot when looking up info on vitamins and minerals: http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/

Here are a couple of sites listing calcium laden foods: http://calciumrichfoods.net/ http://pediatrics.about.com/od/calcium/a/06_calcium_food.htm1

I hope this helps.

http://theprimalparent.com/2012/02/15/calcium-dairy-free-pregnant-paleo/

First off, getting magnesium is more important than calcium - so if you are going to take any supplements, I highly recommend magnesium citrate - which, according to Robb Wolf, "has played a large role in the evolution of our genetics." He aslo recommends a Vitamin D3 supplement if you aren't getting enough sun exposure. You can get PLENTY of calcium from dark green, leafy veggies and small fish like sardines (which actually have a ton of calcium - more than dairy). Check out this WHOLE 9 article on calcium! http://whole9life.com/2012/02/what-about-calcium/ for more information. Hope this helps! ...and if she still harps on you about dairy... tell her you'll take your chances of not getting diabetes over "getting enough calcium."

My family drinks Almond milk. 1 cup has 45% of your daily recommended intake. And like Jenna said, Kale and Broccoli are great sources of calcium. Good luck with your mom! :)

You could take advantage of the progress we made in the past 10,000 years and just eat dairy.

BONE BROTH!! Very calcium rich :) Beyond that, kale and broccoli, I believe? Even on here, dark leafy greens and sardines are both good sources: http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/features/10-calcium-rich-foods

Spinach, canned salmon with bones, broccoli, brussels sprouts, turnip greens...

Here's a link that shows foods that have 300mg of calcium (one serving of calcium) http://sunnybrook.ca/uploads/CNCalciumRichFoodList2005.pdf