Calcium supplements are safe

Calcium supplements do not increase the risk of heart disease.

Until recently the only side-effect of calcium supplementation was a very small increase in kidney stones, but in recent years there has been a suggestion from a small number of researchers that calcium supplementation may increase the risk of heart attacks.

Because calcium and vitamin D are extremely important in bone health and many other bodily functions, people have been encouraged to stop taking supplements and rely on their diet for calcium. In most cases this is usually insufficient, particularly in the elderly.

A study recently presented at the world Congress of Osteoporosis and Musculoskeletal medicine, (April 2016) the authors reviewed the effect of both calcium and vitamin D supplements in over 500,000 people over 7 years in the United Kingdom. This showed no effect of calcium supplements or vitamin D on the incidence of heart disease in either men or women.

The UK Biobank is a large study of men and women (502,664) with a mean age of 58 years, they recorded the baseline intake of calcium and vitamin D supplements and link this to hospital admissions for any cardiovascular event and death through the 7 years of follow-up. 34,890 participants were taking calcium supplements and 20,004 vitamin D. The incidence of heart disease and death were no different from those people taking no supplements.

Hopefully, this will put to bed any suggestion that taking these supplements which are essential particularly as we age does anything other than good. Osteoporosis and falls (particularly hip fractures) are a major cause of both morbidity and death in the older population, and these people can now confidently take the supplements knowing it will do them no harm.