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2004/04/19, 10:02 AM
I read this online. It was sent to me and comes from Health Sciences Institute e-Alert. I am not sure about the sources but it sounds interesting. I have read many different positions on this site regarding calcium and magnesium competition for absorbption, so I figured I'd post this: (It's Long, sorry)
Absorbing it All
Health Sciences Institute e-Alert
April 19, 2004
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Dear Reader,
If you take a daily calcium supplement to support bone
health, the type of calcium you're taking could make a big
difference.
In the e-Alert "Attack of the Vapors" (1/6/04) I collected
comments about vitamin C that HSI Panelist Allan Spreen,
M.D., has shared with us over the years. A member named Laz
responded to that e-Alert with this question: "That was a
very concise explanation of vitamin C. Now could you do the
same with the different calciums?"
Sure can, Laz. I asked Dr. Spreen to fill us in on the
calcium types, and his response will be an eye-opener for
anyone who believes the advertisements that tell you antacid
tablets are a good source of calcium, or for anyone who
doesn't understand that the milligrams you take are not
necessarily the milligrams your body absorbs.
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The lineup
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The question of, "What's a good calcium?" is actually
somewhat complicated. But a simple place to start is by
recognizing that all calcium types are either organic or
inorganic salts.
The inorganic forms:
* Calcium sulfate
* Calcium phosphate
* Calcium carbonate
The organic forms:
* Calcium gluconate
* Calcium lactate
* Calcium citrate
* Calcium amino acid chelate (there are several of these)
* Calcium orotate
* Calcium aspartate
* Calcium ascorbate
And here I'll turn things over to Dr. Spreen: "Each of the
above is obviously not entirely calcium... there's a
percentage of 'the other stuff' attached to the molecule.
So, the percentage of the compound that's 'elemental
calcium' is an issue.
"The most common form of supplement, by far (of all types),
is calcium carbonate. It's also the cheapest. What's more,
it also has the most elemental calcium (40% of the total
molecule). Seems like that might pretty much settle the
selection issue, right? Unfortunately, there are two
problems with the carbonate form: 1) Like the other
inorganic forms, it's the most poorly absorbed (only 5-10%);
and 2) Unlike the other inorganic forms, calcium carbonate
requires (and binds) the most acid.
"The latter problem above is appealing if you're trying to
sell an antacid product 'that's also good for your bones,'
but it's very much a double-edged sword. More acid is now
required for the digestion of proteins, or else
malabsorption (and indigestion!) can occur. Since you take
the antacid for indigestion, you can see where this is
headed."
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The good stuff
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The obvious answer to the absorbency problem with the
inorganic forms is to choose one of the organic forms where
absorption can run anywhere from 25 percent to as high as 95
percent. But again, the details complicate the matter.
Dr. Spreen says that the best absorbed of the commercially
available types are calcium orotate (90 to 95 percent
absorbed), closely followed by calcium aspartate (85 percent
absorbed). However, he points out that, "these are not only
the most expensive, but they're also the hardest to find.
That means they may not be an option for many people.
"Another really good one is calcium ascorbate, which gets
you the benefit of vitamin C as the other part of the
molecule, along with the fact that it's no longer an acidic
form of vitamin C... a neat solution to several problems.
Again, however, it's both expensive, and difficult to find
in many places.
"My next choice would be any of the amino acid chelates, at
65-80 percent absorption, but these are still fairly
expensive, and not as easily found (though easier than the
preceding two). These are probably the best compromise if
you're willing to spend just a bit more."
Dr. Spreen notes that the best compromise of price,
percentage of elemental calcium, and absorption would
probably be calcium citrate. The absorption is 30 to 35
percent, and the citric acid reduces the amount of stomach
acids required for absorption. For most people, calcium
citrate would be the most reasonable way to go.
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Bringing more to the table
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But now that we've found an effective and economical
calcium, we're not quite out of the woods. The problem is
that you can't take calcium alone without making biochemical
trouble for the body. Here's how Dr. Spreen explained it to
me:
"Calcium is not found in nature (in edible form) without
magnesium, and they therefore should always be given
together. Studies show that calcium alone may even be
preferentially laid down in arterial walls rather than in
bones (that doesn't sound good, does it?). Plus, phosphorous
is also needed with calcium. The problem here is that
phosphorous is one of the few minerals that's over-supplied
in the modern (trash) diet. Excesses of phosphorous in the
absence of the other minerals can create a problem with
balance and possible leaching of other minerals.
"What's not mentioned in those cute major-media ads for
calcium and antacids is that for bones, the calcium must
also have not only magnesium (okay, and phosphorous), but
also manganese, silica, boron, strontium, and vitamin D (and
that last one in high doses), vitamin C, vitamin B-12, and
probably even more.
"And you might even have an issue with higher quality
supplements. The really good companies will state on the
label something like 'elemental calcium, in the form of... '
and tell you how many milligrams of the real thing you're
getting (though absorption is of course still an issue).
"Unfortunately, some labels will state something
like, 'Calcium gluconate, 1000 mg.' Are you getting 1000
milligrams of calcium? Nope, in fact you're getting 93
milligrams of calcium; what you got was 1000 milligrams of
the entire compound.
"I wish there were an easy answer. Fortunately, most calcium
supplements are not expensive, so you can take a lot of one
that isn't that well absorbed and do okay, as long as you're
getting a multi-mineral supplement that has some of the
other minerals in there (minus iron, but that's a story for
another day). Read those labels carefully, and Caveat
Emptor!"
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Food boost
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One obvious way to support the effectiveness of calcium
supplements is to make sure you include plenty of calcium-
rich foods in your diet, such as cabbage, kale, yellow,
green, or waxed beans, and salmon. Foods that are high in
magnesium include leafy green vegetables, whole grains,
bananas, apricots, meat, beans, and nuts.
My thanks to Dr. Spreen for his informative look at calcium.
If you have further questions about calcium - or any other
nutrition topic - pass them along and I'll ask Dr. Spreen to
reply.
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Don't sweat what you have no control over... WILL IT MATTER IN A HUNDRED YEARS....
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2006/08/28, 06:49 AM
This is from the Real Age e-newsletter
Pizza, Chili, and Your Bones
The best bone foods are calcium-rich milk, cheese, yogurt -- even ice cream, right?
Surprise! Add tomato paste, spinach, bananas, dried apricots, and baked potatoes to the list. Turns out that, just like the rest of you, your bones need fruits and veggies. They're top sources for two other bone-essential minerals -- potassium and magnesium -- as well as some additional protective nutrients. By the way, tomato paste is a good source of both of the minerals and a classic base for pizza sauce and chili.
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Dont ever give up on a dream due to the amount of time it will take to achieve it. The time will pass anyway.
- Russ Ebsen
Aim high, time flies (fortune cookie saying)
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