Calcium supplements increase bone health in teenage girls
Mothers, tell your daughters – and grandmothers, tell your granddaughters: Take calcium supplements now for healthy bones in decades to come.
As most HSI members are probably aware, women have a much higher osteoporosis risk than men do. But if you wait until middle age or the onset of menopause to start taking calcium supplements, you’ve probably waited too long.
Researchers at the University of Sheffield, UK, gave about 100 young girls (their average age was 12) either 792 mg of calcium daily or a placebo. At the end of the 18-month study, subjects in the calcium group had greater bone mineral content (BMC) in all skeletal sites except the hip, and bone mineral density (BMD) was significantly higher compared to girls who took placebo.
When the girls were examined two years later, BMC and BMD had returned to pre-study levels among subjects who discontinued supplement use.
But not just any calcium supplement will do.
In the e-Alert “Absorbing It All” (4/19/04), HSI Panelist Allan Spreen, M.D., offers helpful recommendations about the best types of calcium supplements, optimal dosage, and nutrients needed to enhance calcium absorbency.
[Jen: Here’s the link for the highlight above: http://www.hsionline.com/ealerts/ea200404/ea20040419.html
Source:
“Calcium Pills Effective for Boosting Bone Health in Teenage Girls” Stephen Daniells, NutraIngredients-USA, 2/19/08, nutraingredients-usa.com
