Health Alert 193
Americans suffer more than 1.5 million broken bones per year with 300,000 broken hips. More than one-quarter of people with broken hips develop complications and die within one year of their injury. But is this problem caused by a lack of calcium?
It’s true that calcium is an essential nutrient. But, the evidence on the much touted calcium supplements may surprise you. Let’s look at just how much calcium you really need and the best way to get it. You need other nutrients to help you absorb and use calcium. They are part of a more effective strategy to build and keep robust, fracture-resistant bones.
* No Evidence for Calcium Supplements *
There are three major weaknesses in the calcium proponents’ studies.
• There are no large, long-term trials that compare calcium supplements to a placebo.
• When we compare dietary calcium and fractures in different countries, we find that countries with the highest calcium intake have higher, not lower, hip fracture rates.
• The United States, England and Sweden have completed seven long-term population studies that do not show reductions in the risk of broken bones with increasing calcium intake. In a large study of nurses, those with higher calcium intakes were at least as likely to break a hip or forearm as those with lower intake. The same was true for men in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study.
These findings show that calcium supplements have no proven effect to maintain strong bones. Calcium supplements can also interfere with the absorption of magnesium, selenium, chromium, and zinc.
* Bone Building 101 *
Your bones are continuously wearing down and building back up in a dynamic balance. The stress of movements and lifting stimulates hormones to direct new bone growth. Later in life, your sex hormones DHEA, androstenedione and especially testosterone decline. Your bone density declines as you age not because you started eating less calcium but because your hormones direct your body to put less calcium into new bone.
Speaking of hormones. Did you know that vitamin D is actually a hormone that directs calcium metabolism? Your skin makes vitamin D in response to ultraviolet light from your exposure to sunlight. Few foods naturally contain vitamin D except dairy products and eggs. A recent study showed that broken hips sufferer frequently had vitamin D deficiency.
A New England Journal of Medicine article recently concluded, “A widespread increase in vitamin D intake is likely to have a greater effect on osteoporosis and fractures than many other interventions.”
* Take Control of Bone Building *
The good news is that there are more effective strategies. Here is a plan to strengthen your bones without calcium pills.
• Get your calcium in your diet. Eat a variety of small fish, dark, leafy green vegetables, almonds and cashews, or dairy products like milk, cheese, and yogurt.
• Exercise. The best to increase bone density and reduce fractures is body weight exercises (like calisthenics) and resistance training. Make a habit of doing these exercises two or three times a week.
• Check your hormones. They are important to direct calcium to build bones. Monitor testosterone and DHEA to determine your need for supplementation.
• Take a vitamin D supplement. I recommend 400 IU per day. It helps your body absorb calcium and maintain bone density.
• Get vitamin K in your greens. It regulates calcium while stabilizing bones in addition to regulating blood clotting. Eat at least one serving of green vegetables like spinach, kale, collard greens, mustard greens, Brussels sprouts or broccoli every day. One study found people eating just 0.1 milligrams of vitamin K daily (about one large serving of greens) were 30% less likely to break their hips than people who ate less than that amount.
• Eat foods rich in B-complex vitamins. Your body also uses a variety of B vitamins in bone building. The best sources are liver, eggs, lean meats, yeast, fish, raw nuts, asparagus, broccoli and bananas.
Al Sears MD
Whyte, J. Osteoporosis Prevention: What Kind of Exercise Is Best? Consultant. 2004: 1002-1004
Mercola, J. (6/7/03). “Do You Really Need Calcium To Build Strong Bones?” www.mercola.com.
Willett, W. (2001). Eat, Drink and Be Healthy. NY: Simon & Schuster, p. 150.