Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 10, Number 5, 1 May 1993 — ʻAi pono, e ola [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

ʻAi pono, e ola

Eat right and Iwe well

by Dr. Terry Shintani

Where to get ealeium without dairy food

Traditionally, Hawaiians never ate dairy products, yet they grew to be tall and strong. What was the source of ealeium in their diet? Why is ealeium so important? Ever see an older person hunched over as if they couldn't stand straight? This condition, known as osteoporosis, happens more in women than in men, and is the result of the thinning of bones due to the gradual loss of ealeium. Calcium is important to maintain bone strength. Eating foods that contain enough ealei-

um helps to prevent osteoporosis. But there are many factors besides ealeium that may cause osteoporosis, including: • eating too mueh protein • laek of exercise • smoking • estrogen imbalance • laek of vitamin D • excessive intake of phosphorus • caffeine • sodium (salt) Let's consider some other factors. Dairy food has been promoted as "man's perfect food." Actually cow's milk is a baby

cow's "perfect food." Most dairy foods are so high in fat and eholesterol that well-informed nutritionists now recommend we substantially reduce our intake of whole dairy food. If it is eaten at all, we should use the very low fat or no-fat variety such as skim milk. This is because fat and cholesterol contribute to heart disease and cancer. Even if you try skim milk, whieh has almost no fat or cholesterol in it, it is important to know that milk protein is the largest cause of allergy in this

country and that 70 percent of the world's population can't handle the milk sugar in dairy foods. There has even been an ominous report that countries that eat more dairy foods have more juvenile onset diabetes. What sources of ealeium ean we eat to get our daily allowances of ealeium without the cholesterol and high fat of dairy food that contribute to heart disease, cancer and other illnesses? Hawaiians ate greens such as lū'au leaf and limu (seaweed) whieh are great fat-free, no-eho-lesterol sources of ealeium. Kale, collard greens and broccoli are other good examples. Spinach, however, has a lot of oxalate that makes mueh of the ealeium hard to absorb. For years we have been told that the best source of ealeium is dairy food. Let's compare dairy ealeium and fat to high ealeium greens: •1 eup whole milk (244 grams) has 288 milligrams (mg.) ealeium, 150 calories, 8 grams (55 percent) fat. • 1 ounee cheddar cheese (28.4 grams) has 204 mg. ealeium, 1 14 calories, 9 grams (74 percent) fat. • 1 spear of broccoli (190 grams)

has 205 mg. ealeium, 50 calories, 1 gram (9 percent) fat. • 1 eup co!lards (190 grams) has 148 mg. ealeium, 25 calories, and only a trace of fat (7 percent). • 1 eup of kelp seaweed (konbu) (185 grams) has 317 mg. ealeium, 60 calories, trace fat (4 percent). • 1 eup of turnip greens (144 grams) has 197 mg. ealeium, 30 calories and trace fat (5 percent fat). You ean see that for weight control, cheese is actually not as good a source of ealeium as high ealeium greens and limu. Tofu, whieh comes from soybeans, also has a fair amount of ealeium. With this information in mind, you may be more interested in eating some calcium-rich vegetables. One easy way to make steamed vegetables taste good is to have a sauce. I eall this recipe "3-2-2-1" sauce. Use it with any steamed vegetable and keep it interesting. "3-2-2-1" sauce 3 Tbsp. low-sodium soy sauce 2 Tbsp. dijon mustard 2 Tbsp. lemon juice 1 crushed garlic clove