Mature women who are in the habit of relying on calcium supplements and vitamin D to strengthen their bones will probably have to reconsider the ways they benefit their health. Following some recent studies, leading experts say that they may actually produce little or no effect.
Daily Intake of Vitamin D & Calcium Associated with Health Hazards
According to the U.S government advisory group, in most post-menopausal women standard low doses of calcium supplements failed to produce the desired result; worse than that, daily intake of calcium (1,000mg) and of vitamin D (400IU) were found to increase the chances of developing kidney stones.
These nutrients are regarded to be essential for ensuring a strong bone structure on a par with a well-chosen diet and staying out in the sun; in cases of bone-thinning osteoporosis and vitamin deficiency doctors can even increase the doses. Still, in women past their menopause the supplements lose their salubrious influence. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force report there is not enough evidence to bear out that they actually make the bones healthier and stronger if taken before menopause, or they work in men only.
Calcium & Vitamin D Supplements Don’t Treat Osteoporosis
These unexpected results wreak havoc with decades-long belief that calcium and vitamin D supplements are to all intents and purposes a guarantee to fight osteoporosis with no side effects.
“Regrettably, we don’t have as much information as we would like to have about a substance that has been around a long time and we used to think we understood,” runs the comment from head of the task force, Baylor College of Medicine’s doctor Virginia Moyer. They still have a lot to learn about the supplements’ impact on health, she sums up.
Meanwhile, the NHS urges people of 65 and over to take a vitamin D pill every day, not exceeding the dose of 25micrograms or 1,000IUs. Nevertheless, this doesn’t go for people with a history of bone fractures or those diagnosed with weak bones. Such cases should be treated individually.
Recommended Daily Vitamin D Dose
Also, it is recommended that the average American adult take a daily 1,000mg dose of calcium – which comes up to 1,300 for women past their menopause. The daily dose of vitamin D is assessed to be 600 IUs and 800 for those who turned 70.
One can also get them from foods like calcium-fortified orange juice, yogurt, milk, cheese and other dairy foods, fish like salmon, and breakfast cereals with calcium additives.
