On this page: About the National Data | Methodology | History
About the National Data
Data
Baseline: 1,077 milligrams (mg) of calcium from foods, dietary supplements, antacids, and drinking water was the mean total daily intake by persons aged 2 years and over in 2013-16
Target: 1,184 mg
Percent improvement
Methodology
To determine total calcium intake, several sources of calcium were considered, including foods, dietary supplements, antacids, and drinking water. The NHANES food consumption data included the collection of 1 day of dietary data for all respondents through in-person 24-hour recalls and collection of a 2nd-day 24-hour recall by telephone. Both dietary recalls are obtained by trained dietary interviewers using USDA's Automated Multiple Pass Method (AMPM). For these analyses, calcium intake from only the first 24-hour recall will be used. Each respondent was asked to recall the kinds and amounts of foods and beverages consumed at home and away from home during the previous day (midnight to midnight). Amounts of foods and beverages reported in household measures were then converted to gram amounts, and calcium intake from foods and beverages was estimated with the use of food composition files. Plain drinking water intakes were collected directly as part of the dietary intake collection of foods and beverages beginning with the 2005-2006 NHANES. Thus, the total daily dietary intake records from NHANES include the calcium provided by drinking water.
If antacids data were missing, it was assumed that no calcium was provided by antacids, but the individual was kept in the calculation.
Breast-feeding children were excluded from the analysis.