Trish, The fact is that dairy foods interfere with the absorption of calcium. The high consumption of dairy is correlated with osteoporosis historically and in research. I am not an expert, but it works something like this. Please other listers jump in with your own knowledge, and ignore my laywoman's explanation! First, protein content interferes with the absorption of calcium. Dairy has way too much protein to not interfere with whatever calcium is present. The caseine will directly interfere with absorbtion, and the calcium in the milk is rendered un-bioavailable for use in building cells and stuff. Second, ounce per ounce, green leafy stuff has just as much if not more Ca than milk or dairy...depending on the veggie of course. And no dairy proteins to interfere with its absorption (or wheat proteins, I might add...I dont know about meat or beans, maybe someone else can say??). Third, people argue for the dairy calcium by showing that blood calcium levels become elevated after consuming dairy. But in fact, high calcium levels in the blood are ALSO the first indication of leeching calcium out of bones. As a point, witness the burial of my cat, a traditional cremation in Japan. My cat had been on steroids for years. Corticosteroids are notorious for leading to osteoporosis and bone depleteion. He had yearly blood tests done...always showed he had exemplary calcium levels in his blood (something like 11 or 12 on a scale up to 13). At his burial, I saw many little nicks and erosion from his bones, which were brittle and yellow looking. Now this is my theory and Im sure many others have their own. It is very possible that we don't even need the calcium levels of 1200 mg. daily or whatever the USRDA says. Because its not how much calcium we get that is the main point; it's how bioavailable that calcium is to us. I believe that milk and grain proteins directly interfere with the healthy use of calcium. And Im not so sure that all that unusable calcium circulating around in our blood system is good for our arteries or kidneys either. Sorry for the long winded highly opinionated explanation. In a nutshell, no, you dont have to worry about calcium if you dont have dairy, and their is hard research to support that you will have to worry about it less than the neighbor who does get his dairy. Judith [log in to unmask] ]]Speaking of Dairy foods............. should I be including more calcium supplements to make up for the calcium I dont eat from dairy? Trish