Calcium supplements are safe! 

This is the conclusion from a new joint clinical guideline from the National Osteoporosis Foundation and the American Society for Preventive Cardiology (click here) . Over the years there have been many reports on the benefits and adverse effects of calcium both taken in the diet, and as supplements. Occasional studies have suggested that calcium in the diet has no effect on cardiovascular disease, but supplements might have. (The word might is in italics because in some trials there is only a suggestion but it is not clinically significant). There are also some studies which show benefit, including one which showed women taking more than 1000 mg of supplemental calcium per day had less cardiovascular disease than those who did not.  Because there are obvious benefits in bone and other health from taking calcium both in the diet and as supplements, these 2 bodies looked at all the evidence that was available, and concluded "dietary and supplemental calcium are safe for cardiovascular health when consumed in the recommended amounts. The recommendation applies to calcium consumed either alone or with vitamin D that does not exceed the National Academy of medicine is tolerable upper intake limit of 2000 to 2500 mg per day""  There will always be studies which so some benefit or lack of benefit, particularly the smaller studies, many of the studies are impure because patients report the amount of calcium they either consumer as supplements or diet during the day, and follow-up is incomplete. There is also a strong lobby against the use of supplemental calcium (in fact the use of supplements), but even if there is an indication rather than a statistically significant result, this will be reported out of proportion to its scientific evidence. When 2 major societies in the United States come to the conclusion that calcium supplementation is safe, there seems little point in individu
als debating the results of further studies.

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.