Milk Group

Key message: Get your calcium-rich foods

Milk Group foods like milk, cheese and yogurt together provide calcium and eight other essential nutrients, including protein, phosphorous, vitamins A, D and B₁₂, riboflavin, niacin and potassium. Dairy foods contribute three of the five nutrients that the 2005 Dietary Guidelines identified as low in children's diets — calcium, potassium and magnesium.

• Calcium is essential for strong, healthy teeth and bones. Calcium also helps muscles contract and relax.
• Bone density and strength built during childhood and adolescence needs to last a lifetime. Adequate calcium intake now — provided by 3 servings of milk, cheese, or yogurt — along with regular physical activity, can help prevent the bone-thinning disease, osteoporosis, later in life — as well as help prevent bone fractures during childhood.
• Vitamin D helps the body absorb calcium and use it to build strong bones.
• Protein helps build muscle and repair body tissue.
• Potassium helps regulate blood pressure.

Foods in the Milk Group

• Milk — whole, low-fat, reduced fat, fat-free, flavored and buttermilk
• Yogurt
• Cheese — all types
• Pudding
• Frozen yogurt
• Milkshake

Some foods are made from milk, but we can't count on them to get the large amount of calcium we need. These Extra Foods are in the "Others" category and include:

• Butter
• Cream cheese
• Whipped cream