Several new research studies underscore the important role of dairy foods in the diets of Americans, particularly children. Current Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend three daily servings of nutrient-rich, low-fat or fat-free milk, cheese or yogurt for adults and children nine years of age or older, and two daily servings for children ages two to eight. A recent abstract shows that milk is the leading food source of calcium, phosphorous, vitamin D and potassium in the American diet. These new findings emphasize the importance of dairy’s critical nutritional contribution. Higher dairy consumption as part of a healthy diet leads to higher nutrient intake, as well as better diet quality and bone health, and has been associated with reduced risk of several diseases and conditions: osteoporosis, hypertension, obesity, metabolic syndrome and diabetes. According to a pair of abstracts presented at the American Society for Nutrition’s scientific sessions and Annual Meeting as part of the Experimental Biology conference on April 26 and 27, the dairy food group (milk, cheese and yogurt) was found to be not only the top source of calcium (39% contribution to overall intake) and vitamin D (52%), but also a substantial contributor of phosphorous and potassium. The study, recently published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, found that what children drink early in life could be indicative of nutrient intake and beverage choice during their teenage years. Researchers found that girls who drank soda at age five had higher subsequent soda consumption and lower milk intake in later years, resulting in a higher consumption of added sugars and lower intakes of protein, fiber, vitamin D, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus and potassium from ages five to 15 years, as compared to girls who did not consume soda at that age.