Is milk the best source of calcium?

Q. What are your thoughts on the body's ability to use the calcium in milk? Is milk the best source of calcium? What other foods come close in providing calcium in our daily food? - Uche

A: The benefits of cow's milk to the human body are questionable as many of us cannot digest it for one reason or another. Though dairy products are considerably higher in calcium than most other foods, if your body can't tolerate dairy, then its calcium is not absorbed well.

Other calcium-rich foods include sesame seeds and tahini, steamed dark leafy greens (such as kale and spinach), nuts (such as almonds), sea vegetables (seaweed such as kelp and nori), and fortified soy, almond and rice milks. Calcium is being added to many packaged foods nowadays to meet our needs (look for the word 'fortified' on a food label). Yogurt is the easiest dairy product to digest (look for natural flavored organic yogurt). Because skim milk products lack the fat and protein necessary to absorb calcium well, stick to a 1% or 2% product.