Mark Sircus
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 Magnesium is essential for proper calcium absorption and is an important mineral in the bone matrix.
"Bones average about 1% phosphate of magnesium and teeth about 1% phosphate of magnesium. Elephant tusks contain 2% of phosphate of magnesium and billiard balls made from these are almost indestructible. The teeth of carnivorous animals contain nearly 5% phosphate of magnesium and thus they are able to crush and grind the bones of their prey without difficulty," wrote Otto Carque (1933) in Vital Facts About Foods. |
C. W. Randolph, M.D.
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 As with a vitamin E deficiency, when the body does not have enough magnesium to support calcium absorption, many women report PMS symptoms such as mood swings, fatigue, headaches, and sleeplessness.
Premenstrual chocolate craving is a phenomenon that has puzzled many physicians. They have been unable to explain why some women have this overwhelming urge to eat lots of chocolate right before their periods, yet at other times of the month the women's chocolate cravings are not as strong. The PMS-chocolate connection makes a lot of sense because chocolate is very high in magnesium. |
Andreas Moritz
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 Osteoporosis is a metabolic disorder caused by many factors, including poor calcium absorption due to bile duct blockage in the liver and gallbladder; milk, cheese, meat, and other acid-forming foods and beverages; and bran. Bran both inhibits the absorption of calcium from food and depletes the body of the calcium it has. Bran also depletes zinc the body requires to restore bone health.
• Sufferers of Alzheimer's disease (senile dementia) are found to have abnormal amounts of aluminum in their brains. |
Brigitte Mars, A.H.G.
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 Constituents
Calcium, iron, magnesium, sulfur, anthraquinones, glycosides (nepodin, emodin, chryysophanol), quer-citrin, mucilage, tannins, resins, oxalates
Energetic Correspondences
• Flavor: bitter
• Temperature: cool
• Moisture: dry
• Polarity: yang
• Planet: Mars/Jupiter/Saturn
• Element: air
Contraindications
Yellow dock leaves are high in oxalate, which can impair calcium absorption and potentially aggravate kidney stones, arthritis, gout, and hyperacidity. Large amounts of the root or leaves may cause nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea. |
Thomson Healthcare, Inc.
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 Recker RR: calcium absorption and achlorhydria. N Engl J Med; 313(2):70-73. 1985
Reid IR, Mason B, Home A, et al. Randomized controlled trial of calcium in healthy older women. Am J Med; 119:777-785. 2006
Reid IR, Ames RW, Evans MC et al: Effect of calcium supplementation on bone loss in postmenopausal women. N Engl J Med; 328(7):460-464. 1993
Riley BB: Incompatibilities in intravenous solutions. J Hosp Pharm; 28:228-240. |
Brigitte Mars, A.H.G.
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| Cacao also contains oxalic acid, which can inhibit calcium absorption and promote kidney stones.
Range and Appearance
The cacao tree, native to Central and South America, grows to 15 to 20 feet in height in the wild, though when under cultivation it is kept shorter. The large leaves are oblong to oval in shape, simple, alternate, and leathery, with a sharp point and entire margins. The small, white to pink flowers grow in clusters of ten to twenty-five. The podlike fruit is produced all year long but takes five to six months to ripen. |
Bottom Line Health
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| Reason: Most women don't get enough vitamin D, which is necessary for calcium absorption.
Best way to get adequate vitamin D: Sit in the sun for 15 minutes a day, without sunscreen. Sunlight is necessary for the skin to manufacture the body's own supply of vitamin D. Vitamin D also can be found in fortified orange juice, certain fortified cereals and fatty fish, such as salmon and sardines. The recommended daily intake of vitamin D is 400 international units (IU), but many researchers now believe that much higher daily intakes are necessary. |
Marshall Editions
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 Fish oils can also improve calcium absorption and deposition into bones when taken at 4 g a day. Boron is a mineral that activates vitamin D and supports estrogen levels of effective calcium metabolism. Take 3-5 mg daily. Vitamin C, among its many other healthy functions, synthesizes collagen, an important component of bone. Take 340 mg a day of strontium, which has been shown to increase bone density when taken with calcium. Finally, take 2-3 capsules of betaine hydrochloric acid with each meal to improve stomach acid, which aids in the absorption of calcium. |
| Vitamin D has also been shown to be effective in building bone mass by improving intestinal calcium absorption and reducing excretion of calcium in the urine. Your daily intake should be approximately 400 IU a day for prevention and 800-1,200 IU per day if you already have osteoporosis. Vitamin K reduces bone loss and low levels have been associated with fractures. Take 2-10 g a day—a smaller amount for prevention and a
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< higher amount if you have osteoporosis. Do not take vitamin K if you are on anticoagulant medications. |
Jonny Bowden, Ph.D., C.N.S.
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 High-protein diets in two recent studies resulted in significantly more calcium absorption than the low-protein diets they were compared to. And a recent study in Obesity
Research compared a low-protein diet to a high-protein diet to determine whether the protein content of the diet impacted bone mineral density. It did. The folks in the /o7i'-protein group had greater bone mineral loss.
Because of the toxins, antibiotics, steroids, pesticides, and growth hormones used in factory farming, I'm reluctant to recommend unlimited amounts of nonorganic meat and poultry. |
| Inulin also increases calcium absorption and possibly magnesium absorption while promoting probiotic bacteria. In addition, dandelion also contains some pectin, another type of fiber that helps relieve constipation and reduce cholesterol. (Pectin is also found in apples.)
Dandelion is a natural diuretic. Want something for bloat and water retention? This is your natural medicine. One of the nice benefits of using it as a diuretic is that it does not cause loss of potassium. |
| There's also about the same amount of calcium as there is in spinach, but arugula is actually lower in oxalates, a substance that inhibits calcium absorption.
Arugula has a nice amount of vitamin K: One cup contains almost half the recommended daily allowance (which in my opinion is too low). Vitamin K is essential for clotting and is a key player in developing strong bones. The Framingham Heart Study, for example, found that people who consumed approximately 250 meg of vitamin K a day had a 35 percent lower risk of hip fractures compared to those who consumed just 50 meg a day. |
Andreas Moritz
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| Diseases related to imbalances of the thyroid gland include toxic goiter, Graves' disease, cretinism, myxoedema, tumors of the thyroid and hypo-parathyroidism, which reduces calcium absorption and causes cataracts. Behavioral disorders and dementia may also have their origin in thyroid imbalances. The failing detoxification of the thyroid gland results in thyrotoxicosis.
High toxicity in the thyroid gland often causes cardiac arrhythmia, which is a serious heart condition, one from which I suffered when I was a child. |
David W. Grotto, RD, LDN
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 Although soy foods are high in both oxalates and phytate, two compounds that can inhibit calcium absorption, the calcium from soy foods is very well absorbed. Fermented soy foods, like tempeh and miso, are a good source of iron. Soy foods are rich in copper and magnesium and are also rich in B vitamins, particularly niacin, pyridoxine, and folacin. Soybeans are rich in phytochemicals known as isoflavones which may help prevent certain types of cancer, fight heart disease, and improve bone density. |
Ann M. Coulston and Carol J. Boushey
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 However, it has been shown that when calcium carbonate is taken with food there is sufficient acidity in the food to permit normal calcium absorption [67]. Therefore my general recommendation for individuals who will likely not consume more than lOOOmg calcium per day through food alone is to take a 500-mg calcium supplement as calcium carbonate each morning with breakfast. For individuals with osteoporosis who are receiving pharmacological treatment, I increase that recommendation to lOOOmg calcium/day.
B. |
James Dowd and Diane Stafford
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 The cause/effect chain goes like this: Sun exposure in the summer raises vitamin D and calcium absorption. You eat more fresh produce in the midsummer and into the fall, and this raises your magnesium intake. Serotonin metabolism is more efficient in response to these changes, thus elevating mood. But from winter into early spring, vitamin D levels fall at the same time that you eat less fresh produce, and that makes your serotonin metabolism less efficient. All of these things depress mood. |
| Robert Heaney of Creighton University, when your vitamin D level is 35 nanograms per milliliter or more, your efficiency of active calcium absorption hits its maximum at 30 to 40 percent. Below a vitamin D level of 20 nanograms per milliliter, this efficiency drops by 50 percent. But in studies of diverse populations, researchers find that average vitamin D levels lie between these two numbers. Raising your D levels may conservatively decrease your calcium needs by 25 to 50 percent, depending on how deficient you are. |
| You get more sun and consume more fruits and vegetables in the summer, which raises your vitamin D and calcium absorption levels and increases your magnesium and serotonin production. You're going along great, feeling good, mood elevated; but then winter comes and your vitamin D level falls. Your serotonin production and calcium and magnesium levels decline, too, and these changes depress your mood.
The longer your winter, the more pronounced the seasonal variations in serotonin production. |
T. Colin Campbell, Ph.D. and Thomas M. Campbell II
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 Calcitriol is considered a hormone; when more calcium is needed, it enhances calcium absorption and restricts calcium excretion. If too much calcium is consumed over a long period of time, the body may lose its ability to regulate calcitriol, permanently or temporarily disrupting the regulation of calcium absorption and excretion. Ruining the regulatory mechanism in this way is a recipe for osteoporosis in menopausal and post-menopausal women. |
Hyla Cass
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 Calcium channel blockers (given to treat high blood pressure)
Calcium
Aluminum antacids, H2 blockers, and PPIs decrease calcium absorption from food. Calcium is the most abundant mineral in the body, with the average male body containing 2.5 to 3 pounds and the average female body containing about 2 pounds of calcium. All but 1 percent of that calcium is stored in bones and teeth; the rest has roles in the passage of nutrients and wastes in and out of cells, and in the contraction and relaxation of muscle cells—particularly, those that make up the heart. |
| Nutrients depleted: B12 depletion is listed as a side effect that may occur with long-term use. calcium absorption is reduced by these drugs as well.
Needed supplements: Calcium (1,000-1,200 mg) and vitamin B12 (200 meg).
NATURAL TREATMENTS FOR HYPOCHLORHYDRIA
If you stop your antacid medication too quickly, you will likely have rebound hyperacidity, and you then will have too much acid to thank for your heartburn.
I ended up recommending to Corinne that she change to an OTC histamine blocker, like Zantac or Tagamet. |
Ann M. Coulston and Carol J. Boushey
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| A certain number of points might be given for every incremental lowering in systolic blood pressure, a certain number of points for every incremental improvement in calcium absorption, a certain number of points for every incremental lowering in frequency of falls, a certain number of points for every incremental reduction in prevalence of key cancers (e.g., breast, colon, prostate, lung, and marrow-lymphoma, among others), and a certain number of points for insulin responsiveness (expressed, for example, in response to a standard glucose challenge). |
| Animal and human experimental studies suggest inhibition of cell proliferation by vitamin D, either directly or by way of its effect on calcium absorption [173-175].
A. Calcium
Support for an association between calcium and colon cancer also comes from controlled studies which show that epithelial proliferation of the colon mucosa, a presumed intermediate marker of colorectal carcinogenesis, is diminished by calcium supplementation in humans [176]. |
| The impact of dietary protein on calcium absorption and kinetic measures of bone turnover in women. /. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab. 90, 26-31.
46. Dawson-Hughes, B., and Harris, S. S. (2002). Calcium intake influences the association of protein intake with rates of bone loss in elderly men and women. Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 75, 773-779.
47. Delmi, M., Rapin, C. H., Bengoa, J. M., Delmas, P. D., Vasey, H., and Bonjour, J. P. (1990). Dietary supplementation in elderly patients with fractured neck of the femur. Lancet 335, 1013-1016.
48. Heaney, R. P. (2007). Effects of protein on the calcium economy. |
Thomson Healthcare, Inc.
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| Osteoporosis
Two studies by Civitelli and colleagues suggested a potential benefit of supplemental lysine for increasing calcium absorption in women with and without osteoporosis. The first trial enrolled 15 women with diagnosed osteoporosis and 15 women without the condition. All subjects were given 3 g of calcium with or without 400 mg of lysine. Serum calcium levels significantly increased in both groups regardless of the addition of L-lysine. |
Elaine Magee
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 There's so much more to vitamin D than enhancing calcium absorption; its anticancer benefit is just one other possibility. Most of 63 recently reviewed studies found a protective effect between vitamin D status and cancer risk. A study presented at the 2006 American Association for Cancer Research meeting suggested that an increase in vitamin D lowered the risk of developing breast cancer by up to 50 percent.
How might vitamin D help? |
J. Douglas Bremner
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 Vitamin D (cholecalciferol) is known to increase calcium absorption in the gut as well as to act synergistically with calcium to promote bone density. This has led to the common practice of prescribing calcium and vitamin D supplementation for the prevention of hip fractures. It sounds so good and logical, and it can't hurt, so why not go ahead and do it?
Just because you become deficient in something with aging, however, doesn't mean that supplementation will correct the problem. |
| Vitamin D (cholecalciferol) increases calcium absorption in the gut, which has led to the common practice of prescribing calcium and vitamin D supplementation together for the prevention of hip fractures.
However, just because your bones will thin when you are in your sixties doesn't mean that taking calcium in your twenties or thirties will affect that. There is no evidence that taking calcium or vitamin D when you are young will prevent bone fractures in old age. |
Jonny Bowden, M.A., C.N.S.
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 High-protein diets in two recent studies resulted in significantly more calcium absorption than the low-protein diets, which were associated with decreased absorption. Interestingly, the actual "low-protein" diet that caused decreased calcium absorption in these studies had about the same amount of protein that the government recommends for adults! The authors concluded that this fact "raises new questions about the optimal amount of dietary protein required for normal calcium metabolism and bone health in young women. |
Herbert Ross, DC with Keri Brenner, L.Ac.
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 Low levels of calcium and magnesium have been associated with muscle cramping, which can disrupt sleep.37 calcium absorption can be compromised by whole grains and cereals, spinach, the tannins in tea, antacids that contain aluminum, or a diet high in protein, refined sugar, and commercial sodas.38
Food sources: Almonds, hazelnuts, oats, lentils, beans, figs, currants, raisins, broccoli, cabbage, brussels sprouts, cauliflower, kelp, and leafy green vegetables, especially kale, which is very high in an easily absorbed form of calcium. |
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