Q&A: Will we get enough calcium on the Paleo diet?
Sunday, May 1, 2011 at 11:11PM In this and in subsequent entries, I will respond to some of the questions received following the lecture Paleolithic Nutrition: What is the Evidence? The lecture will also be given at noon on Friday, May 6 at The Medical Center of Aurora, North Campus.
Adults considering Paleolithic nutrition worry about getting enough calcium if the cut out dairy products. Their main concern is preventing osteoporosis, a thinning of the bone that can lead to fractures, disability, and in the elderly, even death. (Calcium metabolism in children is a separate issue and will not be considered in this entry. After all, Paleolithic young were likely breast fed for 5 or 6 years.)
The modern diet, also referred to as the Western diet, is not favorable to healthy calcium metabolism. As Staffan Lindberg notes in Food and Western Disease:
For the average Westerner, roughly one-fourth of their energy intake is provided by food that is lacking in calcium (primarily oil, margarine, and sugar). Cereals, which provide an additional 25%, contain relatively little calcium. Hence, it should come as no surprise that the calcium intake among many hunter-gatherer societies is estimated to have been higher than among modern Westerners.
Fruits and vegetables, which form the base Paleolithic food pyramid, are important sources of calcium. As Loren Cordain states in The Paleo Diet: