Dairy through Life

Adults

Milk and milk products can play an important part in a healthy balanced diet for adults; they’re not just for children! They can be a good way to incorporate calcium into the diet but also provide other important nutrients including protein, phosphorus and B vitamins.

Below is the amount of calcium required by an adult, and how dairy products could help them to meet these needs.

19+ years

Calcium needs mg/d 700

Portion suggestion providing about 740mg of calcium

• 200ml semi–skimmed milk
• 150g pot of low–fat yogurt
• 30g of cheese

The benefits of dairy products for adults

• Although recommended intake generally reduces during adult years compared with teenagers due to much slower growth, calcium is still an important nutrient
• While most of our bone has been laid down by the age of 18, bones will continue to strengthen until the mid–thirties which means it is important for adults to continue to consume calcium as part of a balanced diet
• Following the mid–thirties it is normal for a person’s body to slowly begin to lose bone. For women, there is a marked increase in bone loss around the time of the menopause
• Calcium can help to reduce loss of bone mineral in postmenopausal women; for women over 50 years an extra 500mg is suggested so 1,200mg calcium per day in total
• Bone loss can eventually contribute towards making bones more brittle and easily fractured
• Getting enough calcium is important for both men and women
• Dairy products can be a good way to incorporate calcium into the diet.
• They can also provide other important nutrients including protein, phosphorus and B vitamins