According to the RDA developed by the Indian Council of Medical Research, children aged 7-9 years require 600mg of calcium daily, while it is 800mg for those in the age group of 10-19 years.

The new study into the dietary habits of 236 children aged 7-19 years found that 90% of their diet was "deficient in calcium." While 45% participants consumed milk, 36% of them had no milk intake at all.

Thus, the researchers developed 14 non-dairy-based calcium-rich products and 12 dairy-based calcium-rich products using methods like malting and fermentation "as food-based interventions" to raise calcium intake in children.

"Calcium is required for formation of strong bones and teeth, blood clotting, normal muscle movement and function of some hormones. Its deficiency could alter all these functions and may increase the risk of osteoporosis in old age," said Neha Sanwalka of Interdisciplinary School of Health Sciences at University of Pune, the lead author.

The non-dairy-based calcium-rich products include finger millet (ragi) dosa, sesame (til) ladoo, sesame-soybean chutney, poppy seed (khus khus) porridge, garden cress (halim) seed, sesame chikki and cauliflower bread, said the study published in Current Science.

Similarly, the dairy-based calcium-rich products include finger millet porridge, rice porridge with poppy seeds, cheese sandwich, spinach-cottage cheese vegetable and sweets like rasmalai and rasgulla.

Tests carried out on the food items showed that non-dairy based food products were on par with dairy-based products for calcium content, said co-author Anuradha Khadilkar, Assistant Professor at Hirabai Cowasji Jehangir Medical Research Institute, Pune.

"200g serving of the products developed in the study can meet about 84% recommended intakes of children," Khadilkar said, adding that the products developed in the study were well accepted in terms of flavour and texture.

The researchers said these calcium-rich products developed by them were "natural sources of the vital mineral."

"The aim of the study was to develop food items which can be easily included in diets of Indians. Thus, cooking methods used were very simple and those which are used commonly or modifications of the same," Shashi Chiplonkar, a co-author also from HCJMRI, said.

"We added garden cress seeds and sesame seeds (til) to coconut chikkis to increase the calcium content of the chikki. And to make dosa, we used the regular method of preparation to make a rice dosa but instead of rice and urad dal, we used ragi and soybean," Chiplonkar said.

Malting processes wherein grains like ragi are sprouted, dried and milled for use in various preparations was used in preparing some of the food products.

 From the September 19, 2011, Prepared Foods' Daily News.