0 Making sense of conflicting advice on calcium intake

In recent years, studies have reported inconsistent findings regarding whether calcium supplements used to prevent fractures increase the risk of heart attack.

Now, in an assessment of the scientific literature, reported as a perspective piece in the October 17, 2013 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, a UC San Francisco researcher says patients and health care practitioners should focus on getting calcium from the diet, rather than supplements, when possible.

"Osteoporosis may result from inadequate calcium intake and its quite common for certain segments of our population, such as the elderly, to consume less than the recommend amount," said Douglas C. Bauer, MD, UCSF professor of Medicine, Epidemiology and Biostatistics. "But a high calcium diet should be the perred method to receive adequate amounts of the nutrient. The Institute of Medicines recommended dosage for post-menopausal women over the age of 50 and men over 70 is 1,200 mg per day.

"If it is not possible to consume enough calcium from the diet, the use of calcium supplements is most likely safe and not associated with cardiovascular outcomes," he said.

Calcium supplements are known to have several side effects, the most common being indigestion and minor constipation, and kidney stones are a rare complication. However, several recent studies have suggested that calcium supplements can also lead to an increase risk of heart attacks.

A 2010 British Medical Journal study, which pooled nearly a dozen randomized trials, concluded that calcium supplements "are associated with an increased risk of myocardial infarction [heart attacks]" and went on to say, " As calcium supplements are widely used, these modest increases in risk of cardiovascular disease might translate into a large burden of disease in the population."

A 2013 JAMA Internal Medicine non-randomized study examined 11,778 cardiovascular-related deaths and found an increased risk with calcium supplement use. The authors concluded, "high intake of supplemental calcium is associated with an excess risk of CVD (cardiovascular disease) death in men but not in women."

However, several other studies have shown no relationship between the use of calcium supplements and cardiovascular events.

For example, a 2010 meta-analysis that included all of the Womens Health Initiative (WHI) trial participants showed "no significant relationship between supplementation and cardiovascular events" in three trials of calcium supplements alone.

Bauer recommends consuming dairy products to increase ones dietary intake of calcium as well as food products that are fortified with extra calcium, such as kale, broccoli and Bok Choy.

Dr. Bauer has received research support from Amgen and Novartis in the past for his work on independent adjudication of endpoints in clinical trials unrelated to calcium, which ended two years ago.

0 Excess Calcium Doubles the Risk of Cardiovascular Death in Women

Cardiovascular disease continues to rank as the leading cause of death among men and women in western cultures. Many lifestyle factors, including processed food diet, lack of physical activity and daily stress contribute to this largely preventable disease and cause of early death. While there are many natural compounds and nutrients that help to help lower the risk of developing heart disease, taking supplemental calcium to prevent bone loss and osteoarthritis is now shown to be a significant factor that promotes the development of cardiovascular disease and advancing mortality, especially in women.

Excess Calcium Intake Disrupts Homeostatic Balance to Double Heart Disease Risk in Women

A research team from Uppsala University in Sweden has published the results of a study in the British Medical Journal that explains how high intakes of calcium (corresponding to diet and supplements) in women are associated with a higher risk of death from all causes, but cardiovascular disease in particular, compared with women with lower calcium intake. For decades, women have been advised to supplement with a daily course of calcium ranging from 1,000 to 1,500 mg to prevent bone loss. This study demonstrates how that advice may be a leading cause for the development of heart disease and early death.

Researchers studied 61,443 Swedish women over an average period of 19 years to test the association between heart disease risk and calcium intake. Data was gathered on total calcium received from both dietary and supplemental sources. The team grouped the women from the lowest mean calcium intake of 572 mg/day to the highest (2,137 mg/day). The scientist factored in lifestyle data including menopausal status, postmenopausal estrogen therapy, weight and height, smoking habits, leisure-time physical activity and educational level to help parse the results.

Women Need to Closely Monitor Calcium Intake from Food and Supplements to Lower Heart Disease Risk

Over the course of the study, 11,944 women, or 17 percent died. The team determined that 3,862 died from cardiovascular disease, 1,932 from heart disease and 1,100 from stroke. The study did not further differentiate specific diagnoses between cardiovascular disease and heart disease. The highest rates of death from all heart disease related causes were associated with a daily calcium intake higher than 1,400 mg/day or lower than 600 mg/day. Women in the top quartile that took a daily calcium supplement were found to be twice as likely to die when compared to those in the ideal range of 600 to 999 mg/day.

The researchers concluded that either high or low calcium intake can override normal homeostatic control causing changes in blood levels of calcium. Although not mentioned in this study, past work has also found that vitamin K is necessary to move excess calcium from the blood into the bones and teeth. Without this critical nutrient, calcium remains in circulation where it is easily bound with oxidized LDL cholesterol to form deadly arterial plaque. Individuals consuming a healthy diet rich in vegetables, nuts seeds and fruits should receive sufficient calcium from diet and naturally benefit from a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, without the need for supplementation.

0 Calcium May Cut Risk for Precancerous Colon Lesions in Some People

Consuming higher amounts of calcium may lower the likelihood of precancerous colon and rectal lesions in people who are at increased risk due to variations in two genes, a new study suggests.

High calcium intake did not affect risk in people without the genetic variations.

The findings may help explain inconsistent results in previous research about the link between calcium intake and the risk for these lesions, called colorectal adenomas, the researchers said.

They also said the findings may help identify patients who would benefit from calcium supplements or higher levels of calcium in their diet.

The study of nearly 6,000 people in Tennessee found that patients with the highest calcium intake had no reduced risk for colorectal adenomas if they had no variations in two genes -- KCNJ1 and SLC12A1 -- that are essential in calcium reabsorption in the kidneys.

Fifty-two percent of the study participants had variations in at least one of the genes and 13 percent had variations in both genes. There was a strong association between high calcium intake and a 39 percent reduced risk of colorectal adenomas in those with a variation in one gene. High calcium intake was linked to a 69 percent reduced risk in those with variations in both genes.

The risk of advanced or multiple adenomas was 89 percent for people who had a high calcium intake and had variations in both genes, according to the study, which is scheduled for Wednesday presentation at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research, in Washington, D.C.

The findings suggest that a person with variations in one or both of the genes will have an increased risk for colorectal adenomas if they consume less than 1,000 milligrams of calcium a day, said study author Dr. Xiangzhu Zhu, a staff scientist with the epidemiology division in the department of medicine at Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center in Nashville, Tenn.

"These patients should increase their calcium intake to reduce the risks," Zhu said in an association news release.

The findings could lead to genetic tests to identify people who would benefit from higher calcium intake, the researchers said. Although the research showed an association between increased calcium intake and lowered risk of adenomas, it did not prove a cause-and-effect relationship.

Because this study was presented at a medical meeting, the data and conclusions should be viewed as preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.

0 High Calcium in Bones of Catfish

High calcium in the bones of Catfish - Fishbone African catfish (Clarias barrachus) who had only just turned out to be a waste can be processed into high-crackers that contain calcium. Bone Crackers African catfish has the highest calcium content, which reached 7999 milligrams in 100 grams of cracker cracker than others, such as ACI crackers, shrimp chips, and crackers mackerel fish.

Crackers aci does not contain calcium, while the prawn crackers and crackers mackerel fish each containing 332 mg and 2 mg of calcium per 100 grams of crackers.

This is the result of research "Oktaviana Rahmawati" and "Pratama Rachmat", high school students Muhammadiyah 1 Solo, which won the champion III for IPS and Humanities at the Olympic Student Research Indonesia which was held October 9 to 14 and then in the Ministry of National Education.

"I like to eat catfish and catfish I saw bones piled up thrown away. Then sparked the idea to use a cracker," said Pratama.

In addition to calcium, bone fish African catfish are processed into crackers also contain phosphorus, which is 129.1 mg per 100 grams of crackers as well as calories, protein, fat, and carbohydrates.

African catfish bones processed first into flour before it is made into crackers with extra tapioca flour, wheat flour, and spices with a particular composition. "We tested many times after being asked the craftsmen cracker, search the internet, and receive guidance from teachers Scientific Group Adolescents in school," said Oktaviana.

Selection of African catfish because the most widely used today in food stalls and fishing, so easy to obtain and cheaper than the local catfish. In addition to high calcium, bone crackers African catfish also has high prospects for entrepreneurship. With capital Rp.66.600, can be obtained crackers 1022 with measuring on diameter 5 cm. If packed into 102 packets with a selling price of Rp 2.000/packet will give a net profit of Rp 137 .400. [kompas]

0 Calcium Protects Against Cancer

Every woman with a head on her shoulders knows about the importance of calcium for strong bones to prevent osteoporosis, a serious disease affecting older women. I myself have been a long time consumer of low-fat dairy products for this very reason (plus I love cottage cheese with almost anything). But now we have an added reason to wolf down the calcium.

New research has shown that women with higher intakes of calcium appear to have a lower risk of cancer overall, and both men and women with high calcium intakes have lower risks of colorectal cancer and other cancers of the GI system (this is from the February 23 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine).

The Institute of Medicine currently recommends 1,200 milligrams of calcium for adults age 50 and older, and the 2005 dietary guidelines for Americans recommend 3 cups per day of low-fat or fat-free dairy products. In the study, the decrease in risk for women was with intake of up to 1,300 mgs per day, after which no further risk reduction was observed. In both men and women, dairy food and calcium intakes were inversely associated with cancers of the GI and one-fifth of men who consumed the most calcium through food and supplements (about 1,530 mg per day) had a 16 percent lower risk of these types of cancer than the one-fifth who consumed the least (526 mg per day). For women, those in the top one-fifth of calcium consumption (1,881 mg per day) had a 23 percent lower risk than those in the bottom one-fifth (494 mg per day) with a most pronounced decrease for colorectal cancer. So what is it about dairy that is so protective against cancer?

Dairy is relatively high in anti-carcinogenic nutrients such as calcium, vitamin D and conjugated linoleic acid. Calcium has been shown to reduce abnormal growth and induce normal turnover among cells in the GI tract and breast and it binds to bile and fatty acids, which may reduce damage to the mucous membrane in the large intestine. So the bottom line is: even if you’re dieting, be sure to include that lowfat dairy to protect yourself against disease!

Article by : Veronica

Article Source : Calcium Protects Against Cancer