Calcium is the most abundant mineral found in the body, with 99-percent stored in bones and teeth. Calcium helps your body perform essential functions including muscle and blood vessel contraction, as well as hormone and enzyme secretion, explains the Office of Dietary Supplements. The Recommended Daily Allowance of calcium for adult's ages 19 to 50 years old is 1,000 mg daily.
However, certain health conditions may necessitate a low calcium diet. Should your doctor prescribe a low-calcium regimen, there are a number of healthy foods available for you to choose from.
Fruit
When you want food low in calcium, eat a piece of fruit. Harvard University Health Services provides a list of fruit along with the calcium content in each that includes: one medium kiwi fruit with 20 mg of calcium and 46 calories; 1 cup of fresh raspberries with 27 mg of calcium and 60 calories; half a medium papaya with 36 mg calcium and 60 calories; and one orange with 52 mg of calcium and 60 calories.
Vegetables
Eat several servings of vegetables a day as recommended by the United States Department of Agriculture. Many vegetables, but not all, are low in calcium. Cooked green, leafy vegetables tend to have the highest calcium content. According to nutritional information provided by MyPyramid.gov, a U.S. Federal Government website, a ½ cup of cooked asparagus contains 10 mg of calcium and 10 calories; a ½ cup of cooked kohlrabi contains 21 mg of calcium and 18 calories; and a ½ cup cooked summer squash contains 24 mg of calcium and 18 calories.
Beans
Eat beans with your meal for a healthy, low calcium food that also provides protein and fiber. Beans appear in recipes from countries around the world including the United States, Mexico and China. Harvard University Health Services provides a list of beans and their calcium content in cooked, half-cup servings as follows: black beans with 23 mg of calcium and 113 calories; baby lima beans with 25 mg of calcium and 95 calories; lentils with 29 mg of calcium and 115 calories; and kidney beans with 34 mg of calcium and 103 calories.
Fish
The average fillet of fish is a low calcium food. However, seafood can be a rich source of calcium when you eat the bones. Canned sardines, smelt and anchovies are fish commonly eaten with the bones left intact. Four sardines contain 242 mg of calcium. According to information provided by University of Harvard Health Services, the calcium content of several fish species in 3-ounce portion reads: raw Atlantic cod, 13 mg of calcium and 89 calories; cooked crab, 50 mg of calcium and 82 calories; and light tuna canned in water has 10 mg of calcium and 99 calories.
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