LOS ANGELES, Jan. 7 (UPI) -- U.S. latte lovers got good news when research showed that not only is coffee rich in antioxidants, but the milk provides much-needed calcium as well.
"Lattes are a good way to add extra calcium to your diet," says Susan Bowerman, assistant director of the University of California at Los Angeles Center for Human Nutrition.
"They're better than drinking coffee alone. The calcium and other nutrients in milk, protect bones to guard against osteoporosis, and with non-fat milk, you get the nutrition with few calories."
The National Coffee Association says that coffee drinkers consume, on average, three cups of coffee per day. Seventy-five percent are served with milk, which amounts to about a quarter cup per coffee drink. That adds up to an average of 3/4 cup of milk per day, or 225 mg of calcium -- nearly 25 percent of the calcium RDA for adults.
However, the milk in coffee does not register with many coffee drinkers. In a poll of 150 California coffee drinkers, only 6 percent considered coffee with milk as a calcium source.
