Calcium Info for the Ladeez

Some people have been asking me lately about the importance of calcium supplements. As young adult women, it is recommended that we consume 3 dairy products a day to meet our calcium needs of 1,000 mg. It is also recommended that if this amount dairy is not consumed we should take calcium supplements in order to protect ourselves from developing osteoporosis. Calcium supplements are one of the top selling mineral supplements in the U.S. But do we need them?

First of all, I don’t want to get too in depth about my feelings on dairy but there are many, many other ways to get dietary calcium. The dairy industry is like any other industry – it wants to sell its product so it uses good advertising. Sure, milk is a good source of calcium but I definitely would NOT recommend eating 3 servings of pasteurized dairy products per day as an adult. (I promise to eventually give a good explanation).

So as for the question of whether or not we need calcium supplements, the answer is that there is no definitive evidence that calcium supplements taken as pre-menopausal adults prevent osteoporosis. There are other more effective ways to protect your bones.

Our bones develop like this: as a kid and teen, you need lots of calcium (and other vitamins and minerals) from your diet to help build your bones because they are made up of mostly calcium. Then when we reach about age 25, our bones are as strong as they are ever going to be. You can’t build on them anymore. After menopause, the dip in estrogen causes demineralization of your bones and it is during this time that people experience a loss in bone mass of 3%-5% per year (at this point, studies show that supplements do help).

What seems to be more important than taking calcium supplements is to PREVENT bone loss during your young to middle adult years. This is relatively easy to do:

• Do get calcium through your diet to maintain a positive calcium balance. Dairy is not necessary. I’ll list some good alternative sources below.
• Make sure you get the recommended amount of vitamin D. The current recommendations are to get 400 IUs of the vitamin per day but evidence is beginning to mount that we actually need more, especially if we are dark skinned or don’t see the sun too often. Why vitamin D? You need it to absorb dietary calcium and other minerals. As it turns out, a vitamin D deficiency is the most common cause of secondary osteoporosis.
• Eat lots of fruits and vegetables. They contain the vitamins and minerals needed to keep bones strong and they help create a friendly, harmonious environment in your body. An analogy – if your body were a party, the fruits and veggies would be the Libra guests.
• Cigarettes weaken your bones so don’t smoke.
• Don’t drink colas. The high phosphorus content sucks the calcium right out of your bones. BAD.
• Keep alcohol and caffeine consumption to a minimum
• Exercise. Weight bearing activities help prevent bone loss.
• Don’t get too skinny – if you are underweight, you are more likely to have bone loss later. You want to have a BMI of about 19%-24%.

Good non-dairy sources of calcium: almonds – 400 mg for ½ cup; cabbage – 426 mg for 1 head; mixed dried fruit – 111 mg for 1 ¼ cup; cooked spinach – 244 mg for 1 cup; blue crab meat – 136 mg for 1 cup; canned salmon – 880 mg for 1 can. Just some examples. Sometimes juices and bread products have calcium added to them also.

There is nothing wrong with calcium supplements but people should definitely not rely on them for ensuring strong bones. Studies don’t show that they are effective. Studies do show, however, that protecting the bones in the ways listed above are effective for preventing osteoporosis-related problems in the future.

If you are pregnant, a supplement is probably necessary. The parasitic little dude will leech all the calcium it needs from you whether you have enough for yourself or not!