Calcium may help lower cholesterol

Milk does a body good -- yes, we all know the trite tag line. Got milk? Yeah, we've all heard that one, too. The thing is, this push for people to consume more calcium-rich products has a great deal of merit, for there is more and more evidence pointing to how it can help you lose weight and, believe it or not, help you reduce cholesterol.

Canadian researchers put 63 overweight women on a diet and gave half of them 1,200mg of calcium per day. The other half of the women took a placebo. Fast forward fifteen weeks -- the women who took the calcium supplements lost approximately 2 pounds more than the placebo group and, interestingly enough, also showed that they had dropped their cholesterol level by twice as much as the other women.

What we can take away from this study: If possible, consume at least 1,000mg of calcium per day (the Recommended Daily Allowance). Source it from low-fat dairy, green vegetables, orange juice with calcium, or (if your doctor okays it) through supplements that can be purchased at most grocery and health food stores.