Are Calcium Supplements Harmful?

A lot of people take calcium supplements, especially older folks to strengthen their bones.  Can this cause more harm than good?  A study released on Friday, July 30, 2010 by the British Medical Journal suggests that calcium supplements may increase the risk for heart attack, especially in healthy older women.  

International team of researchers led by Ian Reid of the University of Auckland in New Zealand found that calcium supplements were associated with about a 30 percent jump in heart attack risk.  The chances of stroke and mortality also increased to a lesser extent.

This risk is only associated with calcium supplements, not the natural calcium derived from food.  

“In a commentary, John Cleland of the University of Hull and colleagues point out that -- regardless of possible impacts on heart attack rates -- calcium supplements are probably not very efficient in reducing fractures in any case.”

Many people think of calcium supplements as natural, however, they are not.  Instead of taking these supplements, people should eat more calcium-rich food and exercise.  Both of these natural factors prevent brittle bones.  

"If you have 1,000 people taking calcium for five years, we will expect to find 14 more heart attacks, 10 more strokes and 13 more deaths in the people given calcium than they would have had if they hadn't been treated with calcium," Reid said.

"When you take calcium supplements, your blood calcium level goes up over the following four to six hours and goes up to the top end of the normal range," he said.

"That doesn't happen when you have calcium to eat in your diet because the calcium from food is very slowly absorbed and so the blood calcium level hardly changes at all."

So the bottom line is, try to eat natural calcium rather than take supplements.  

Top 5 Non-Dairy Foods High in Calcium
1. Figs (four pieces contain 506 milligrams of calcium)
2. Sardines with bones (3 ounces contain 324 milligrams)
3. Soybeans (1 cup contains 261 milligrams)
4. Salmon with bones (3 ounces contain 181 milligrams)
5. Sesame Seeds (1 tablespoon contains 80 milligrams)

Top 3 Foods with Calcium (by Category)
Nuts
1. Sesame Seeds
2. Almonds
3. Walnuts

Fish/Shellfish
1. Sardines (with bones)
2. Salmon (with bones)
3. Oysters

Vegetables
1. Soybeans
2. Broccoli
3. Chick Peas

Fruits
1. Figs
2. Apricots
3. Oranges