Q: I want to avoid medications to lower cholesterol, but I need to eat dairy foods for the calcium. Do you have any suggestions on healthier dairy foods?

O. WILLIAMS, Duluth

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A: Fat-free dairy foods have even slightly more calcium than full-fat varieties, so by choosing fat-free instead of whole or 2 percent milk, you can decrease saturated fat and boost calcium at the same time. Fat-free or reduced-fat yogurt is another good choice for calcium.

Soy milk and rice milk are usually fortified with calcium, so that is another alternative to dairy milks. Although most of us automatically turn to dairy foods as a source of calcium there are a lot of nondairy foods that are good sources of calcium that are efficiently absorbed by the body and that contain other important nutrients that can be heart healthy.

Women need between 1,300 and 1,500 milligrams of calcium a day so try some of these foods as a milk alternative.

To get 100 milligrams of calcium you could eat:

• 2 large dried figs

• 1/2 cup soy nuts

• 1/2 cup cooked broccoli or turnip greens

• 1 package of instant oatmeal mixed with water

• 1 cup of cooked navy beans, baked beans or black beans

• 2 oranges

• 23 whole almonds

• 2 1/2 tablespoons of almond butter (Try it instead of peanut butter for different taste.)

If you are serious about a food approach to cholesterol lowering, check out the Portfolio Eating plan at www.portfolioeatingplan.com. This diet plan, containing soy foods, almonds, and foods rich in soluble fibers and plant sterol has been shown to reduce cholesterol as much as medication.

RECIPE

Peach-Blackberry Smoothie (4 servings)

Hands on: 5 minutes

Total time: 5 minutes

2 cups vanilla soy milk

2 cups frozen peaches

1 cup frozen blackberries

2 tablespoons almond butter

2 tablespoons honey

Combine milk, peaches, blackberries, almond butter and honey in blender and blend until smooth and thick.

Source: www.portfolioeatingplan.com (click on recipes)

Per serving: 214 calories (percent calories from fat, 35), 7 grams protein, 36 grams carbohydrate, 3 grams fiber, 6 grams fat (1 gram saturated), no cholesterol, 72 milligrams of sodium.

Nutritional Bonus Points: Each serving contains 30 milligrams of calcium and contains heart-healthy fat and fiber.