Replacing Calcium & Protein-Dairy Milk

I have transitioned myself down to just a diet of all plant based food plus milk recently.
I am now trying to figure out how to transition away from milk which seems to be a somewhat difficult step as it is such a good source of calcium and protein.
I like to keep things as simple as possible.
Does anyone have any suggestions or thoughts that might be helpful for me on this?

You don't need to worry about protein.

Calcium is a pain in the ***.
It isn't about just how much is in a food, it is about how much can be absorbed. Some greens like spinach and chard have oxalate which prevent the calcium from being used.

The easiest way to get calcium is to eat tofu that used calcium to coagulate the soy milk it was made from. Read the nutrition information and ingredients list on any given brand to find the tofu you want.

After that, collard greens and kale are your best source.

If you have trouble digesting those greens, try limiting yourself to 100g cooked per serving and use frozen varieties. When water freezes it expands, so when ice melts, ice shards rupture cell membranes. I'm not an expert, but I think that is why in my experience frozen greens have been easier to digest. Freezing and unfreezing rip up the cell walls.

Fortified plant milks, and orange juice are also palatable, easy choices.
 
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Dairy is often thought of as the only source of this mineral. However, it’s also naturally present in an array of plant foods — from grains and legumes to fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds. You’ll even find it in seaweed and blackstrap molasses.​
What’s more, several foods are fortified with this nutrient. Thus, variety is key when trying to meet your calcium needs on a vegan diet.​

 
This site delves into not only plant based sources, but the bioavailability of plant based calcium compared to animal.
Plant sources and animal sources of many nutrients are not equal

 
The RDA for calcium is based on a protein-heavy meat-based diet. It is artificially high to compensate for the acidification of the blood caused by excess protein.

Vegans don't need as much calcium if we don't overdose on protein. I don't know if anyone has done a study to see what a more appropriate vegan RDA would be, but it is not something to stress about.

Remember that cows don't make calcium. You can only make calcium in a nuclear reactor! Cows get all their calcium form their diet, which is vegan.
 
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The RDA for calcium is based on a protein-heavy meat-based diet. It is artificially high to compensate for the acidification of the blood caused by excess protein.

Vegans don't need as much calcium if we don't overdose on protein. I don't know if anyone has done a study to see what a more appropriate vegan RDA would be, but it is not something to stress about.

Remember that cows don't make calcium. You can only make calcium in a nuclear reactor! Cows get all their calcium form their diet, which is vegan.
That's what Dr Greger highlights in the above link
 
The RDA for calcium is based on a protein-heavy meat-based diet. It is artificially high to compensate for the acidification of the blood caused by excess protein.

Vegans don't need as much calcium if we don't overdose on protein. I don't know if anyone has done a study to see what a more appropriate vegan RDA would be, but it is not something to stress about.

Remember that cows don't make calcium. You can only make calcium in a nuclear reactor! Cows get all their calcium form their diet, which is vegan.

Virginia Messina R.D. (vegan herself ) wrote several years ago that this has proven not to be true.

The US hasn't used the term "RDA" for a number of years. It is not the "DRI" ( Daily Recommended Intake ).

The US DRI is higher than recommended in the UK or by the WHO ( World Health Organization, not the band ).

The British (BDA) recommends ( as does Harvard ) 700mg a day for adults with no issues.

Plot twist, your bones have at least 13 other minerals in it. If you care about your bones, eat greens ( not lettuce -- you couldn't eat enough for it to count ) that are low in oxalic acid ( not spinach or chard ) daily, in addition getting a lot of weight bearing exercise. You will likely get more of those other minerals than drinking cow's milk or calcium fortified plant milks.
 
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This blog post is old, so the information may have been changed.

It isn't how much calcium you eat, it is how much your body can absorb.

The post lists the sources with the most absorbable calcium

 
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The RDA for calcium is based on a protein-heavy meat-based diet. It is artificially high to compensate for the acidification of the blood caused by excess protein.

Vegans don't need as much calcium if we don't overdose on protein. I don't know if anyone has done a study to see what a more appropriate vegan RDA would be, but it is not something to stress about.

Remember that cows don't make calcium. You can only make calcium in a nuclear reactor! Cows get all their calcium form their diet, which is vegan.
The idea that protein from meat leaches calcium from bones is wrong as far as I know. The bottom line is that people need plenty of dietary calcium. The reason people consume dairy is that in some parts of the world, it's a great source of calcium. You don't need milk for calcium but you do need calcium. This is one example of the fact that humans *have* adapted to eating animals.

Many people have a high need for dietary calcium and it's wrong-headed to assume that for some reason vegans need less.

I will offer something I think I've said here before. I will not say this is correct though personally I believe it is more or less right. I don't know if more research has been done.

A little while back, a paper was published that proposed a mechanism to explain high dietary calcium demand. It suggested that the adaptation to lactase-persistence (which is how people came to consume dairy into adulthood) had a concomitant co-adaptation. That adaptation was a change in the efficency with which dietary calcium intake was metabolised within the body to ensure calcium homeostasis. The end result was that where before the lactase adaptation people got by with a low calcium intake, those with the adaptation needed more. On top of this, consuming milk as fermented milks and soft cheeses - as people did back then - led to a naturally high intake of Vitamin K2 which is important for ensuring propoer metabolising of calcium. So those people also adapted to lower endogenous conversion of K1 to K2.

The end result is that modern, lactase-persistent peoples need plenty of dietary calcium. They also need Vitamin K2 to help proper deposition of calcium in bones and not in artery walls. The downside is that non-lactase persistent people (for example, most African Americans) retain the historical calcium metabolising mechanism and do NOT need so much calcium.

What all of this means is that lactase-persistent people (eg Europeans) need plenty of dietary calcium. They also may be subject to osteoporosis in later years. These people should also aim to get appropriate intake of Vitamin K2 to help prevent atherosclerosis. Non lactase-persistent people such as African Americans on the other hand who consume too much milk (that is, get too much dietary calcium) may experience elevated rates of certain cancers, particularly calcium-ion mediated cancers like triple-negative breast cancer.

Again, this is not nutritional advice and I do not know if any other research backs this up, so no-one should act on this information contrary to formal nutritional advice. Consider this a FYI only. I have spoken to original researchers about this and there remains some confidence this is how things happened. I ensure I drink calcium fortified milk (rather than use calcium supplements which may be associated with elevated cancer risks) and take Vitamin K2 supplements (when I can't get hold of Natto).
 
poppy, sesame, mustard, and herbs (basil, parsley, etc.) have the most calcium. How I got my calcium on my diet - was by growing my own basil and eating it for breakfast. The issue with plant-based milks is that the calcium is added in - so the body has a harder time absorbing it - Dr Greger talked about how this leads to more heart attacks, as calcium is in plaque.

Vegan foods have the most calcium of any food - and that's barley grass powder! Wheatgrass is high too, but 1lb of barley grass I believe gives you 16g of calcium - your body only needs 2g each day! If you want to replace plant milks, go green!
 
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Are some of the non-dairy milk alternatives not a complete protein source?
Before worrying about protein, try considering a few things:
1. Except for starvation, protein deficiency is so rare that I have never heard of a single case. I'm not even sure it has a name.
2. There are many vegans alive and healthy today that have been vegan for decades. They must be getting all the protein they need from somewhere.
3. The longest living people on Earth had a relatively low protein diet.
 
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poppy, sesame, mustard, and herbs (basil, parsley, etc.) have the most calcium. How I got my calcium on my diet - was by growing my own basil and eating it for breakfast. The issue with plant-based milks is that the calcium is added in - so the body has a harder time absorbing it - Dr Greger talked about how this leads to more heart attacks, as calcium is in plaque.

Vegan foods have the most calcium of any food - and that's barley grass powder! Wheatgrass is high too, but 1lb of barley grass I believe gives you 16g of calcium - your body only needs 2g each day! If you want to replace plant milks, go green!
You must really really really like poppy, sesame, mustard, and herbs (basil, parsley, etc.) to eat enough to say they're high in calcium--though I can understand sesame to a degree.
Beans are my best option, followed by greens
poppy, sesame, mustard, and herbs (basil, parsley, etc.)
 
I have transitioned myself down to just a diet of all plant based food plus milk recently.
I am now trying to figure out how to transition away from milk which seems to be a somewhat difficult step as it is such a good source of calcium and protein.
I like to keep things as simple as possible.
Does anyone have any suggestions or thoughts that might be helpful for me on this?
Milk was actually the easiest for me, there are more plant based milk choices depending on what your doing with it, my favorites are oat milk and coconut milk. By simply eating more plants, especially greens, your sure to meet your calcium needs. I take a multi vitamin though, I think everyone should take their vitamins, despite diet
 
Before worrying about protein, try considering a few things:
1. Except for starvation, protein deficiency is so rare that I have never heard of a single case. I'm not even sure it has a name.
2. There are many vegans alive and healthy today that have been vegan for decades. They must be getting all the protein they need from somewhere.
3. The longest living people on Earth had a relatively low protein diet.
I think what they're referring to with protein is important around the time of eating calcium - as proteins help build strong bones with calcium inside. To talk about eating protein overall in the diet doesn't help. If you eat calcium by itself - it won't absorb well or stay put in the body. without the protein - like collagen (think about where gelatin comes from). I hope you reconsider these factors.
 
You must really really really like poppy, sesame, mustard, and herbs (basil, parsley, etc.) to eat enough to say they're high in calcium--though I can understand sesame to a degree.
Beans are my best option, followed by greens
poppy, sesame, mustard, and herbs (basil, parsley, etc.)
it's not liking - it's science. People have a lot of options for foods high in calcium is all I'm getting at. Beans have a lot of iron that blocks calcium absorption - not that beans have any calcium to begin with! I don't want to go down the path about how much you like beans haha.
 
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Before worrying about protein, try considering a few things:
1. Except for starvation, protein deficiency is so rare that I have never heard of a single case. I'm not even sure it has a name.

Yes it does but I did have to look it up.
Kwashiorkor, also known as “edematous malnutrition” because of its association with edema (fluid retention), is a nutritional disorder most often seen in regions experiencing famine. It is a form of malnutrition caused by a lack of protein in the diet.
Basically you only get it when you are starving.
Like we have been saying - if you are getting enough calories you are probably getting enough protein
2. There are many vegans alive and healthy today that have been vegan for decades. They must be getting all the protein they need from somewhere.
Yes. and already said at least once. all plants have adequate amounts of protein to sustain life.
3. The longest living people on Earth had a relatively low protein diet.

and in more modern studies people who eat high to moderate amounts of carbs are healthiest.
 
I think what they're referring to with protein is important around the time of eating calcium - as proteins help build strong bones with calcium inside. To talk about eating protein overall in the diet doesn't help. If you eat calcium by itself - it won't absorb well or stay put in the body. without the protein - like collagen (think about where gelatin comes from). I hope you reconsider these factors.
I need verification from somebody I trust. With all due respect, much of what you write in VF comes across as highly unlikely, badly thought out, without real knowledge or with an underlying agenda. I am going to put you on ignore so that you don't trigger me.
 
I need verification from somebody I trust. With all due respect, much of what you write in VF comes across as highly unlikely, badly thought out, without real knowledge or with an underlying agenda. I am going to put you on ignore so that you don't trigger me.
everything I say is easy to find a source for on the internet - if you want to source my info, go ahead. However, a lack of evidence is an Argumentum Ad Ignorantiam logical fallacy. If you don't want to listen to me just because I don't post sources, that's your choice. However, I feel you should look into what I say to understand where I come from before me coming up with sources, as if you don't believe me right now, I don't see how anything I say will be believed. Regardless of believed or not, these are my opinions and the facts I've seen from what I know - and I'll continue to write what I feel, regardless of people's emotions - as other people's emotions are irrelevant to what is in me to say. That said, if I'm incorrect, feel free to correct me - I just hope you don't get angry at me just because you haven't verified something - my hope is that you'd use the energy to double check with your own sources :). Hope we can work this out, so you'll feel better.