Are Calcium Supplements Safe?
Dr. Greger – 5 minute video includes >20 references
- “In 12 short years, government panels have gone from suggesting widespread calcium supplementation may be necessary to protect our bones to “Do Not Supplement”.”
- “Perhaps because when you take calcium pills, you get a spike of calcium in your bloodstream that you don’t get just eating calcium rich foods. Within hours of taking supplemental calcium, the calcium levels in the blood shoot up and can stay up as long as eight hours. This evidently produces what’s called a hypercoagulable state, your blood clots more easily, which could increase the risk of clots in the heart or brain. And, indeed, higher calcium blood levels are tied to higher heart attack and stroke rates. So, the mechanism may be calcium supplements lead to unnaturally large, rapid, and sustained calcium levels in the blood, which can have a variety of potentially problematic effects.”
6 ways which might decrease Calcium Hazards
- Take more Magnesium - Increase the Magnesium/Calcium Ratio
- Use Plant-based Calcium
- Increase Vitamin K2 - to keep Calcium out of the soft tissues
- Use Calcium from processed dairy products (cheese, Yogurt)
- if take milk, use high-fat type of milk
- Drink lots of water