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Nutrition and Weight Loss > Healthy Eating > Good Food > What You Need to Know About Calcium Supplements
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What You Need to Know About Calcium Supplements

Follow these tips to get the most out of your calcium supplements

By Kenna Simmons

The advice is simple: to keep bones strong and ward off osteoporosis, especially as you age, get enough calcium – 1,000 milligrams (mg) per day if you’re younger than 50; 1,200 mg if you’re older. You can get calcium in your diet by eating green leafy vegetables; consuming low-fat milk, yogurt and cheese; or opting for calcium-fortified juice, bread and cereal. If you don’t get enough calcium in your diet, you'll need to take a calcium supplement daily. But you may need to know more about calcium to ensure your body gets what it needs.

Calcium Supplement Basics

1. Make sure you check the amount of elemental calcium in a supplement; that’s what your body will actually absorb.

2. Take several smaller doses per day, because your body can absorb only 500 mg at a time.

3. Your body needs vitamin D to use calcium most efficiently, so look for calcium supplements that contain both.

Calcium “Cheat Sheet”
There are several different types of calcium. Check out the chart below for the three most popular types, and to help determine the best calcium supplement for you. Other kinds, such as calcium gluconate and calcium lactate, have very low amounts of elemental calcium and are not recommended. Coral calcium and oyster-shell calcium products also are best avoided because they may contain lead.

Calcium Type  Pros      Cons
Calcium citrate
(Citrical, Solgar) 21% calcium		 Most easily absorbed Most expensive; doesn’t contain much elemental calcium
Calcium carbonate
(Tums, Caltrate, Rolaids) 40% calcium  		 Least expensive; has more elemental calcium Must be taken with meals or glass of acidic (orange) juice; may cause gas or constipation
Calcium phosphate (Posture) 39% calcium   Does not cause gas or constipation; easily absorbed More expensive than calcium carbonate
claudia
27 Aug 2010, 13:26
Thirty years ago I went to my doctor for preventative measures re: osteoporosis. I was very thin and media kept saying for people like me osteoporosis was inevitable so I paniced and went for help even though I was perfectly healthy. I was not given a bone density test or know if there were any back then. He put me on hormone pills and I was in intense stomach pain and had severe bleeding. I was told to stay on it but after a week I stopped it. My stomach was swollen to the point of a 9 month pregnant mother and afterwards I could not eat without severe pain. I went to a gastro specialist and had all kinds of tests to the point that they thought I was making it all up. I later became lactose intolerant and my digestive system has never been the same and had IBS. Two years later, since stopping all dairy, I starting losing bone mass. I have been on every medication, each one with worse side effects then the one before. I have been suffering for over thirty years. I now have bone pains but at least all the severe chest pains they caused have stopped. The bones in my toes are all twisting sideways and now my feet hurt and sometimes my legs feel numb or cramp up. The last med was Boniva and reversed it back to Osteopenia but after 6 months I had to stop it because of the severe heart palpatations that were constant.
Now I am only taking clacium and Vit.D but cannot have another bone density test since I am only allowed one every two years according to some law? I am furious with myself for trusting my Dr. at the time when my bones were fine. Now I have exactly what I was afraid of getting and now suffer the consequences for life. I have found no medication that does not cause bone or chest pains. I also, now at 60, have gained over 20 lbs. and have belly fat that seems to grow every time I put something into my mouth. I also fell 2 years ago and fractured 3 ribs that keep painfully reminding me to never go to a doctor for preventative care again.
Kay
17 Aug 2010, 13:37
For those of you who have problems with constipation when taking calcium, here is what I call the magic recipe my doctor gave me. I have a rectal intussusception, a slipping of part of the rectum over itself which causes an obstruction, and have had what was thought to be irritable bowel syndrome all my life. Now that I use the magic recipe, I have regular bowel movements.

The recipe:
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup unfiltered prune juice
1 cup oat or wheat bran (in the cooked cereal section of your grocery store. But it's much, much less expensive in a bulk food store.)

Mix together and refrigerate. Begin taking 1 tablespoon and drinking a full glass of water or milk in the late afternoon. Continue taking for at least 5 days. If the constipation is still present, increase the amount to 2 tablespoons with a glass of milk or water in the afternoon. Increase or decrease the amount you take until you have regular bowel movements.

I had to increase to 1/3 cup in the morning and 1/3 cup in the afternoon before my body got the message. Now I take between 1/4 cup and 1/3 cup once a day in the afternoon. You can mix this into a smoothie, eat it with fresh fruit, or mix it into the milk you pour onto dry cereal.

I freeze the measured portions of applesauce and prune juice in flat plastic containers, pop them out of the containers and vacuum seal them. When I need to make more, I take a package out, empty it into a mixing bowl while still frozen, and pour the oat bran on top, then cover it. In about 45 minutes, it has thawed enough to stir up and keep covered in the refrigerator.

I hope it works as well for you as it does for me.



The mixture almost solidifies when refrigerated, so I always mix it with juice, milk, or yogurt to thin it down.

It sets up pretty hard sometimes, so I add more applesauce to my portion.
Fran galvin
17 Aug 2010, 11:33
Reading Gita's comment, which I found very interesting, I have a question. I have to take 1200 mg. per day (being over 50)so, do I take 2 pills (600 x 2) or 5 pills (240 x 5)? I figured probably the 5 due to 240 being the full elemental calcium.
Thanks for your help in advance.
mike
17 Aug 2010, 11:07
Gita Nallan is correct. Coral Calcium is superior and extensive lab tests have proven it. One thing to note is the additives of any supplement in pill or tablet form. Its actually best if in powder form. A pill or tablet has been pressed and is harder for the the body to break down allowing sufficant digestion and absorbtion. And it uses additives to keep it bound together once pressed into a pill or tablet. Another problem with gel caps or liquid form is the addatives used to preserve it in a liquid state. Even though Calcium takes a long time to break down - They still use a fillers to make it liquid. Powder is best.
Rita
15 Aug 2010, 05:30
I bought country life calcium-magnesium w/ d complex - it has many types of calcium hydroxyapatite, citrate, and lots of other calciums but this calcium will not dissolve when put in water or even when I add vinegar to it - it can stay there for days and i stir it and it acts like quick silver - is this normal for calcium to do this?
laurel
16 Jul 2010, 07:50
Nature Made has a new chewable vitamin d, not sure of ingredients
Aimee Good
09 Jul 2010, 12:48
I need a gluten free, chewable calcium supplement with vitamin D3, preferably as calcium phosphate (not carbonate or citrate). I used to take Posture D chewables, gluten free, but I can't find them. I was told they are not being manufactured anymore. Anybody have suggestions for me?
anju
01 Jun 2010, 16:27
i have a constipation problem so what calcium is good for me?
Gita Nallan
15 Apr 2010, 11:56
Calcium exists in nature in 2 forms namely (1)hydroxyapatite and (2) calcium carbonate. The first one is mainly found in animal bones and the second on earth(rocks) and sea/ocean. The age of earth is much much older than animals.

Since Calcium Carbonate is naturally available, it should not cost much. On the other hand Calcium Citrate(Citracal) is made in the lab and hence expensive. Lot of people get fooled by the "so called" health/diet industry to go for the costly Citracal. Another advantage of Calcium Carbonate is that it has twice elemental calcium(40%) than Calcium Citrate(only 21%) for the same weight. You do the math and figure out which one is cost effective as well as gives more calcium the body needs.

For example, if you get 600-D Caltrate/Os-cal(Calcium Carbonate form),40% of 600mg tablet is the actual elemental calcium, which is 240mg. If you get the same 600-D Citracal(Calcium Citrate form),21% of 600mg is the actual elemental calcium in one tablet, which is 126mg.

If your metabolism is already compromised, then you need to do trial and error with tablet, chewable or liquid form of Calcium Carbonate and see which one works best for you. Hope this explains.

PS:I'm into health and fitness. I do sprint(one of my unaerobic exercise) for which one needs strong bones and muscle strength.I itake the tablet form.
mary beth
18 Feb 2010, 15:19
I don't like taking pills. Is liquid calcium a good alternative?
Susan
30 Nov 2009, 17:26
Is calcium phosphate truly non-constipating? I have tried carbonate & citrate & have trouble with both of them. Are the liquids any less constipating than tablets?
John Tibbitt
29 Nov 2009, 09:21
My first job out of college was in a vitamin packaging plant. Some people wanted us to fill a large capsule with a flow agent and 1/3 calcium so it would look like a large capsule of calcium. My boss refused, he insisted on minimal flow agent to encapsulate it.
So you must look on the label to see the true amount of actual calcium in the capsule. a 500 mg capsule may not be 500 mg calcium.

Tablets are the worst. They are so hard that they might just pas through undigested.

I now use a liquid calcium, but not the flavored or colored. To many fillers and dye negate the health benefit of supplements. I use angstrom calcium.

Unlike tablets and capsules that go through your stomach. It is aborbable though the cell with out digestion. Easier digestion = more calcium absorbed. That is the best in my opinion.
Marklyn Boucher
25 Aug 2009, 09:01
I am taking Nature's Plus liquid calcium with 1000 mg of calcium as gluconate complex and 200mg of magnesium as gluconate complex and 100 iu vitamin D. How much actual calcium am I getting in this.
lynn king
09 Jul 2009, 01:06
I was taking Posture-D Chewables Calcium with Vit. D but the manufacturer stopped making the chewables. What other brand will provide the same nutrition for me as the Posture D in a chewable form or at least a small capsule?? I have difficulty swallowing large pills and the Posture D pill is HUGE. Thank you.

lynn king
Carol
17 Apr 2009, 20:26
Does the calcium phosphate contain much elemental calcium? The chart doesn't say.
Laura
16 Apr 2009, 11:31
Nice to see this comparision, always wanted to know which form of calcium was best but never could find anything. Explain the types of fiber next!
Darlene Gluyas
17 Mar 2009, 12:41
I was taking Posture-D Chewables Calcium with Vit. D but the manufacturer stopped making the chewables. What other brand will provide the same nutrition for me as the Posture D in a chewable form or at least a small capsule?? I have difficulty swallowing large pills and the Posture D pill is HUGE. Thank you.

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