Objective: The dietary intake of calcium is fundamental for prevention of osteoporosis, especially in the first three decade of age to gain a valid peak bone mass; moreover physical activity is important for the same reason. The objective of our research is to examine the food habits and the way to practice sport in a homogenous population of schoolchildren.
Materials and methods: Data were collected by an original questionnaire in 500 schoolchildren (238 males, 262 females, 9-12 yrs) living in the centre of Italy.
Results: Data show that the calcium intake decreases while the age increases. According to the recommended daily calcium dose, the percentages of insufficient calcium intake were 21% in the 6 years old group, 35% in the 7 to 10 years old group and 52.5% in the 11 to 14 years old group. Milk and dairy products cover 57% of the calcium needs (17% and 40% respectively), water covers 24% and the other foodstuffs 19%; moreover most children (43.5%) practice non competitive sports with a preference (58.3%) for no-weightbearing sports (mainly cycling) over weightbearing sports (mainly football). CONCLUSIONS. This survey suggests that a high percentage of young people do not take the recommended daily dose of calcium (especially interesting that becoming older with consequent lower parental control over the diet, the higher the incidence of poor calcium intake increases), then it would be recommendable to establish a national health program promoting appropriate physical exercise plus a correct calcium intake as early as the primary school.