Calcium supplementation

PURPOSE: The current literature on the effects of calcium supplementation on cardiovascular health is reviewed. SUMMARY: A comprehensive literature search identified reports on 13 observational studies and 9 clinical trials pertaining to calcium supplement use and the risk of adverse outcomes such as cardiovascular disease (CVD), myocardial infarction (MI), and stroke; cardiovascular events were not primary endpoints of any of the reviewed studies, most of which focused on the effects of calcium use on bone health...

OBJECTIVES: This paper aims to examine the risk of nephrolithiasis in patients with osteoporosis and calcium supplementation. METHODS: This work is based on the systematic review of studies retrieved by a sensitive search strategy in Medline and Embase (1991-2010), and the Cochrane Central register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) up to 2010. The abstracts of the annual scientific meetings of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) and the European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) (2008-2010) were also examined...

Current recommendations for calcium intake call for 1,000 mg per day for women ages 19-50 and 1,200 mg per day for women over age 50 to ensure bone health. Given recent concerns that calcium supplements may raise risk for cardiovascular disease and kidney stones, women should aim to meet this recommendation primarily by eating a calcium-rich diet and taking calcium supplements only if needed to reach the RDA goal (often only approximately 500 mg per day in supplements is required).

OBJECTIVES: Preeclampsia is a leading cause of maternal and fetal mortality and morbidity. A hallmark of preeclampsia is endothelial cell dysfunction/activation in response to 'toxins' from the placenta. Necrotic trophoblastic debris (NTD) is one possible placental toxin and other activators of endothelial cells include inflammatory cytokines. Calcium supplementation appears to protect 'at-risk' women from developing preeclampsia but how is unclear. METHODS: Placental explants were cultured with interleukin-6 (IL-6) in varied concentrations of calcium...

BACKGROUND: Mobilization of maternal bone mineral partly supplies calcium for fetal and neonatal bone growth and development. OBJECTIVE: We investigated whether pregnant women with low calcium intakes may have a more extensive skeletal response postpartum that may compromise their short- or long-term bone health. DESIGN: In a subset of participants (n = 125) in a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial (International Trial Registry: ISRCTN96502494) in pregnant women in The Gambia, West Africa, with low calcium intakes (approximately 350 mg Ca/d), we measured bone mineral status of the whole body, lumbar spine, and hip by using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and measured bone mineral status of the forearm by using single-photon absorptiometry at 2, 13, and 52 wk lactation...

BACKGROUND: It has been suggested that a higher calcium intake might favourably modify cardiovascular risk factors. However, findings of an ultimately decreased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) are limited. Instead, recent evidence warns that taking calcium supplements might increase myocardial infarction (MI) risk. OBJECTIVE: To prospectively evaluate the associations of dietary calcium intake and calcium supplementation with MI and stroke risk and overall CVD mortality...

Calcium Supplements and Fracture Prevention Clinical Practice, N Engl J Med 2013;369:1537-1543. In the second paragraph of the Potential Harms of Calcium Intake section of Strategies and Evidence (page 1541), the number of trials mentioned in the second sentence should have been 11, rather than 15, and the parenthetical at the end of the sentence should have read, "(odds ratio, 1.27; 95% CI, 1.01 to 1.59)(22)," rather than "(odds ratio, 1.31; 95% CI, 1.02 to 1.67).(22)" In the sixth sentence, beginning "In a subsequent meta-analysis," the final parenthetical should have read, "(odds ratio, 1...

BACKGROUND: Calcium plays an essential role in nearly all cellular processes. As such, cellular and systemic calcium concentrations are tightly regulated. During sepsis, derangements in such tight regulation frequently occur, and treating hypocalcemia with parenteral calcium administration remains the current practice guideline. OBJECTIVE: We investigated whether calcium administration worsens mortality and organ dysfunction using an experimental murine model of sepsis and explored the mechanistic role of the family of calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinases in mediating these physiological effects...

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Calcium is an essential nutrient for skeletal health; however, it has been suggested that supplemental calcium may be associated with adverse cardiovascular effects, raising widespread concern about their use. One suggested mechanism is via increasing carotid atherosclerosis, however few randomized controlled trials (RCT) of calcium supplements have assessed these mechanisms. The calcium intake fracture outcome study (CAIFOS) was a 5-year RCT (1998 to 2003) of 1.2 g of elemental calcium in the form of calcium carbonate in 1460 elderly women...

BACKGROUND: Calcium supplementation of pregnant Gambian women with a low calcium intake results in lower maternal bone mineral content in the subsequent lactation. OBJECTIVE: The objective was to investigate whether the lower bone mineral content persists long term. DESIGN: All women in the calcium supplementation trial (International Trial Registry ISRCTN96502494) who had been scanned with dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry at 52 wk of lactation (L52; n = 79) were invited for follow-up when neither pregnant nor lactating for ≥3 mo (NPNL) or at 52 wk postpartum in a future lactation (F52)...

BACKGROUND: Several studies have focused on the effects of calcium intake on serum lipid concentrations in postmenopausal women. However, many premenopausal women are taking calcium supplements in China. To our knowledge, no studies have assessed whether the effects of calcium supplementation on blood lipids are similar between premenopausal and postmenopausal women. OBJECTIVE: We assessed the effects of calcium supplementation on blood lipid concentrations in premenopausal and postmenopausal women with dyslipidemia...