Here is the truth about which Calcium to take

Calcium is a vital mineral necessary in thousands of uses in your body. And we have all been told we need extra calcium in our diet to stay healthy.  This is absolutely true.  But the absorption and physiology of calcium is extremely complex in your body.  So I’m going to give you the down and dirty of the truth about calcium from a supplementation point of view.

First, blood calcium and bone calcium are two totally different things and have very different functions in the body.  Blood calcium is important in keeping the pH balance of your blood so you can be healthy.  Bone calcium is a structural component of bone density.  Both of these types of calcium are extremely important for health and you must supplement your diet to keep both of these at optimum levels.

This is where the problem comes in.  What is the best source of calcium for supplementation?  Is it TUMS, dairy, or do I have take expensive supplements to do it?

There are different types of calcium on the market.  The most common calcium is called calcium carbonate.  Basically, calcium carbonate is most commonly ground up sea shells.  This is the most popular calcium supplement currently and the cheapest to produce.  The problem is calcium carbonate is the worst absorbing calcium for your body.  Less than 1 percent of calcium carbonate will make it into your blood stream.

There are other forms of calcium that have better absorption.  Calcium lactate, calcium citrate and calcium malate are all more absorbable than calcium carbonate.  But they are more expensive to produce so they are more expensive to the consumer, just another example of you getting what you pay for. 

How about dairy products, aren’t they a good source of calcium?  Yes, they are a good source of calcium, but that calcium can’t be absorbed because calcium absorption must be balanced with magnesium and phosphorus and diary products are a very poor source of these 2 minerals so calcium absorption from dairy products is very poor.  Besides the magnesium and phosphorus problem, recent studies suggest the majority of people are lactose intolerant so dairy products create an immune reaction in those people which also slows absorption.

So what is the best way to get calcium in your food?  Green leafy vegetables, such as broccoli, spinach and kale are the best and most bio-available sources of calcium.  From a supplement point of view, look for calcium lactate or calcium citrate, but this is just the beginning of the journey of calcium from your gut to your bone.

You also need magnesium, phosphorous, Vitamin D, Vitamin F, Vitamin K and other essential fatty acids and enough acid content in your stomach to break down the calcium into absorbable pieces.  Thankfully, green leafy vegetables have all these things.  So your Mom was right after all, you have to eat your vegetables!