CALCIUM - IN THE BODY AND IN THE DIET

One of its most important functions, is its action in muscular contractions which in turn helps to regulate the heartbeat and assist in the transmission of nerve impulses. Additionally, calcium has been found to be an integral component of proper blood clotting, of maintaining the walls of blood vessels, and in specific enzyme activation.

One of the current debatable topics on calcium questions the best sources of the macro-mineral. Calcium is naturally occurring in a variety of common foods including all dairy products, sardines, clams, oysters, tofu, turnip and mustard greens, broccoli, kale, legumes, and dried fruits. Although meats, grains and nuts do contain some calcium, they are considered poor sources. Looking at this list, one would assume that it would an easy task to obtain the recommended daily calcium levels. It turns out though, all calcium sources are not created equal, or so the research has shown.

One school of thought touts that dairy can contribute the recommend daily dietary calcium amounts, while others feel that dairy sources cannot be assimilated by the body as completely or as easily as the calcium from greens and legumes. To add to the difficulty of crowning one source the leader over the rest, other factors must be considered. For example, Vitamin D plays a role in calcium’s absorption, as does fiber, phytate, oxalate, magnesium, unabsorbed dietary fatty acids and phosphorous. Although the debate will rage on, especially as special interest groups continue to pay for the research being done, the terrible consequences of not getting the required calcium amounts is taking its toll on the western world.

Calcium deficiencies are a major public health concern for the aging population, osteoporosis being the most serious. According to the National Osteoporosis Foundation, an estimated 10 million Americans have the disease. Meanwhile, 55 percent of people 50 years of age and older are at risk of developing osteoporosis. This disease afflicts four times the number of women than men, probably due to changes in the body during menopause.

In conclusion, it makes sense to attempt to incorporate 1000 mg of calcium daily, the recommended dietary allowance (RDA) for adults aged 19-50 years old, by eating a wide variety of foods from the above list. Also, be sure to continue to monitor the latest research for changes and additions to the calcium story.

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