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The National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) stated in its Mar. 13, 2006 publication for the Milk Matters campaign titled "Building Strong Bones: Calcium Information for Health Care Providers":

“You can help children achieve lifelong bone health by talking to parents and young people about the importance of calcium consumption, especially during ages 11 to 15, a time of critical bone growth. Children and teenagers can get most of the their daily calcium from 3 cups of low-fat or fat-free milk…

Although calcium is found in a variety of foods, the 1994 National Institutes of Health (NIH) Consensus Statement on Optimal Calcium Intake designated dairy products as the preferred source of calcium because of their high calcium content. The 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans also recommends milk and milk products as sources of dietary calcium based on studies that show a positive relationship between intake of milk and milk products and bone mineral content or bone mineral density in one or more skeletal sites…

Low-fat or fat-free milk [is] the best source of calcium because it has high calcium content without added fat, and because the calcium is easily absorbed by the body.”

Mar. 13, 2006