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Did you see the study released last week about calcium supplements and increased risk of heart disease in post-menopausal women? Did it make you throw your hands up in the air in frustration? What, exactly, is a woman to do when she's told she needs extra calcium to prevent bone loss and in the next breath is told that her increased calcium could put her at greater risk of heart disease, already the number one killer of women?
I wandered around the blogosphere to see what women were saying about this problem.
Bronwyn warns us about supplements and reminds us that we should be nourishing our bodies with healthy foods rather than relying on supplements.
The answer will always be no. Supplements are not safe, not even calcium ones. Remember that nutrients compete with one another in our body - they compete for carriers, enzymes and ultimately, absorption. So when we take one, two, or even multi-supplements (which do not nearly include all the nutrients we need), we are setting ourselves up for deficiencies of other nutrients. For example, calcium is well-known for competing with iron, magnesium, copper, and zinc. Since all of these minerals are necessary for bone building, it's ironic (pun not intended) that so many women are advised to take supplemental calcium.
Doc of Ages shares her thoughts on calcium supplements.
What am I going to do? Just like most of my patients, I find calcium tablets big and gross. Sometimes I take them, sometimes I don't. I plan to keep up that strategy and advise my patients of the above information. If I was even older than I am, I think I'd leave my calcium tablets on the shelf and face up to yogurt, vitamin D, and exercise.
Bonnie says women get too much calcium...
Women especially ingest way too much calcium and choose poorly absorbed sources. In the near future, the mainstream will finally discover that the key to healthy bones later in life is a combination of lifestyle choices (exercise), low inflammation (anti-inflammatory diet), and the proper ratio of supplemental calcium, vitamin D, and magnesium.
There's your answer. Eat a healthy diet, get some exercise and skip the supplements that could be doing you more harm than good. What do you think? Are you tossing your calcium supplements out?
~~Denise
Flamingo House Happenings
