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Home › Expert Q&A › Health Concerns › My son is severely allergic to dairy. Is it OK to give TUMS as a calcium supplement? He is almost 3 years old.

Expert Q&A

 

By Allison Gamble
Nutritionist/Diet Technician Highland Park Hospital, Illinois

My son is severely allergic to dairy. Is it OK to give TUMS as a calcium supplement? He is almost 3 years old.

In my opinion, I suggest relying on food first, supplements second.Children ages 1 to 10 years need 800 mg of calcium per day. (Per the TUMSnutrition facts, 2 tablets provide 400 mg of calcium).Luckily, there are non-dairy sources of calcium. Some of those are:

  • Canned fish with bones - 3 ounces provide about 250 mg calcium
  • 1 egg provides about 30 mg calcium
  • Tofu with calcium lactate (check the nutrition facts for calciumlactate) 4 ounces provides around 50-250 mg calcium
  • 1 slice of bread provides around 25 mg calcium
  • Green leafy vegetables - ? cup has about 100 mg calcium
  • Fruit - ? cup has about 20 - 40 mg calcium
  • Orange juice fortified with calcium - ? cup has around 160 mgcalcium

Keep in mind a toddler's portion size is ? to ? smaller than an adult's, sotry to make a variety of calcium rich foods daily. I believe in supplementuse only if there is an attempt at meeting the nutritional needs throughfoods first. If you feel better including a supplement, I suggest achildren's calcium supplement. They are available in syrups, chewables, orwafers.

I don't think giving your son TUMS in a safe manner is going to do harm, butthe question remains -- what is safe? I called the TUMS customer servicenumberand they recommend that parents thinking of using TUMS as a calciumsupplement for a child under the age of 12 should consult with their child'sphysician. Your next step should be to call your child's physician fortheirthoughts since they know your child's past medical history.

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