AT RISK OF CALCIUM DEFICIENCY
Calcium Deficiency: Inadequate intakes of dietary calcium
from food and supplements produce no obvious symptoms in the short term.
Circulating blood levels of calcium are tightly regulated. Hypocalcemia results
primarily from medical problems or treatments, including renal failure,
surgical removal of the stomach, and use of certain medications such as
diuretics. Symptoms of hypocalcemia include numbness and tingling in the
fingers, muscle cramps, convulsions, lethargy, poor appetite, and abnormal
heart rhythms. If left untreated, calcium deficiency leads to death.
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| THE NATURE CALCIUM 1000 |
Calcium Deficiency: Menopause leads to bone loss because
decreases in estrogen production both increase bone resorption and decrease
calcium absorption. Annual decreases in bone mass of 3%–5% per year frequently
occur in the first years of menopause, but the decreases are typically less
than 1% per year after age 65. Increased calcium intakes during menopause do
not completely offset this bone loss. Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) with
estrogen and progesterone helps increase calcium levels and prevent
osteoporosis and fractures. Estrogen therapy restores postmenopausal bone
remodeling to the same levels as at premenopausal, leading to lower rates of
bone loss, perhaps in part by increasing calcium absorption in the gut.
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| THE NATURE CALCIUM 1000 |
Calcium Deficiency: Amenorrhea, the condition in which
menstrual periods stop or fail to initiate in women of childbearing age,
results from reduced circulating estrogen levels that, in turn, have a negative
effect on calcium balance. Amenorrhea women with anorexia nervosa have
decreased calcium absorption and higher urinary calcium excretion rates, as
well as a lower rate of bone formation than healthy women. The female athlete
triad refers to the combination of disordered eating, amenorrhea, and
osteoporosis. Exercise-induced amenorrhea generally results in decreased bone
mass.
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| THE NATURE CALCIUM 1000 |
Calcium Deficiency: Lactose intolerance refers to symptoms such
as bloating, flatulence, and diarrhea that occur when one consumes more
lactose, the naturally occurring sugar in milk, than the enzyme lactase
produced by the small intestine can hydrolyze into its component monosaccharide
and glucose. Lactose-intolerant individuals are at risk of calcium inadequacy
if they avoid dairy products.