Monday, February 24, 2025, 6:36AM |  33°
MENU
SECTIONS
OTHER
CLASSIFIEDS
CONTACT US / FAQ
Advertisement
Chantal's Specialty Cheese Shop in Bloomfield features  cheese blocks and more. (For the Post-Gazette)
3
MORE

Cracking the calcium code to understand its role in health

(For the Post-Gazette)

Cracking the calcium code to understand its role in health

People seeking straightforward nutrition advice might have a bone to pick with calcium, a building block of health that can start to seem like a piece from a complicated puzzle.

Luckily, the basics – such as understanding why you need it and how to make sure you're getting enough – don't have to be puzzling at all.

"Calcium is important for overall health," said Dr. Kristina Petersen, an associate professor of nutritional sciences at Penn State University in University Park, Pennsylvania. "And we know inadequate intake or deficiency causes health problems."

Advertisement

Calcium is best known as the building material for your skeleton. More than 99% of it is in bones and teeth. But calcium also plays several roles related to heart health. It may help regulate blood clotting, heart rhythms and how blood vessels dilate and contract.

This is a portion of the Municipal Water Authority of Aliquippa, Pa., shown on Dec. 11, 2023 in Aliquippa, Pa. The Aliquippa water authority was just one of multiple organizations breached in the United States by Iran-affiliated hackers who targeted a specific industrial control device because it is Israeli-made, U.S. and Israeli authorities say.
Jacob Geanous
Pittsburgh-area water providers are eyeing cybersecurity as EPA warns of increased hacks

People whose diets are deficient in calcium have a higher risk of high blood pressure, said Martha Gulati, director of preventive cardiology in the Smidt Heart Institute at Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles. But exactly how that works isn't fully understood, said Gulati, who also is president of the American Society for Preventive Cardiology.

Dietary calcium can be tricky to study, Petersen said, because it's difficult to discern its effects from other nutrients in calcium-rich foods.

The recommended daily allowance for calcium is 1,000 to 1,200 milligrams a day for adults, depending on age; teens and pre-teens need slightly more. But this is where conversations about calcium can start to sound like a puzzle, or the seating arrangements at a high school cafeteria — because it's all about who calcium is fitting in with at mealtime.

Advertisement

Without adequate vitamin D, for example, your body can't absorb much calcium from food. That's particularly important for bone health, Petersen said. (Few foods contain vitamin D naturally, but your skin makes it when exposed to sunlight, and it's routinely fortified into milk and milk substitutes such as oat milk.)

Meanwhile, some foods contain compounds that bind with calcium and prevent the body from using it. For example, spinach has a fair amount of calcium, but only about 5% ends up being bioavailable — that is, absorbed into the body. By comparison, about 32% of the calcium in milk is bioavailable.

People who don't want to fetch a calculator or open a spreadsheet to plan each meal might be tempted to reach for a calcium supplement to boost their levels. Not so fast.

First, you should consult with your primary care physician before taking any supplement, Petersen said. And although some people might have a valid reason to take one, in general, most can get the calcium they need in their diet.

A person wearing a mask works the information desk of the Natural History Museum in D.C. on May 25, 2024.
Fenit Nirappil and Sabrina Malhi
COVID will still be here this summer. Will anyone care?

Some studies, Petersen said, have found that high levels of calcium from supplements actually can be bad for heart health. Gulati, who co-wrote the National Osteoporosis Foundation and American Society for Preventive Cardiology guidelines about calcium supplements in 2016, said that studies overall have been contradictory about calcium supplements' safety and benefits.

"Ultimately, I think that the best way to get nutrients is through our food," Gulati said. "I don't advocate for a lot of supplements unless somebody truly can't get it from food."

Happily, experts have an easy answer to the question of how to get the calcium you need without keeping a nutrition textbook handy: Just eat a range of healthy foods throughout the day.

"That should be sufficient," Gulati said. Sure, you could schedule your meals to avoid calcium-binding foods at the same time you're eating those that are calcium-rich, she said. "But I think that's a very difficult way to eat."

By eating a variety of healthy foods throughout your day, chances are you're not always eating something that's calcium-binding, she said, and you're probably getting something else that's beneficial.

"And the thing about calcium is that there are actually lots of sources out there," she said.

Most bioavailable calcium is going to come from dairy products such as low-fat milk, yogurt and cheese, Petersen said. Federal dietary guidelines recommend that adults have three one-cup servings of dairy a day. The DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) eating plan also includes two to three servings of low-fat or fat-free dairy. (Butter is technically dairy but is not a good source of calcium, she said.)

Plant-based milks can be a good dairy alternative for people who are lactose intolerant or who don't consume animal-based products. "However, you do need to make sure that you are choosing a calcium-fortified one," Petersen said.

Gulati happens to be vegan and draws on a long list of non-dairy options to meet her needs. "Edamame is one great source of calcium," she said. "Tofu also is a great source. Nuts, particularly almonds, are another good source," as are leafy greens such as bok choy and collard greens, especially when cooked.

Other sources include beans, winter squash, sardines and canned salmon.

Petersen said she finds dairy to be a convenient way to get her calcium. She likes milk in her coffee and is a big fan of yogurt and its many portable forms. "You can just put one in your bag and take it to work, and that's your snack."

First Published: June 2, 2024, 9:30 a.m.

RELATED
SHOW COMMENTS (0)  
Join the Conversation
Commenting policy | How to Report Abuse
If you would like your comment to be considered for a published letter to the editor, please send it to letters@post-gazette.com. Letters must be under 250 words and may be edited for length and clarity.
Partners
Advertisement
Protesters gathered at the corner of Murray and Forbes avenues to speak out against the Trump administration's policies on Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025, in Squirrel Hill.
1
news
'We will fight back': Hundreds rally in Squirrel Hill in opposition of Trump, Musk and president's administration
York County District Attorney Timothy J. Barker reacts during a news conference regarding the shooting at UPMC Memorial Hospital in York, Pa. on Saturday, Feb. 22, 2025.
2
news
Police officer killed, gunman dead in shooting at UPMC Memorial Hospital in York
This undated photo provided by the Denver Police Department shows Andrew Duarte who served as a Denver police officer from 2017 to 2022.
3
news
Officer killed in York hospital shootout was PennWest California graduate
The University of Pittsburgh's Cathedral of Learning
4
business
Amid funding uncertainty, Pitt pauses doctoral admissions
Kash Patel, new Federal Bureau of Investigation director, speaks after he is sworn in during a ceremony at the Indian Treaty Room of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building within the White House complex Friday, Feb. 21, 2025, in Washington.
5
news
New FBI Director Kash Patel will also be named acting head of the ATF, source says
Chantal's Specialty Cheese Shop in Bloomfield features cheese blocks and more. (For the Post-Gazette)  ((For the Post-Gazette))
Tofu is an excellent source of nondairy protein.  (Laura Chase de Formigny / For The Washington Post)
Tofu is an excellent source of nondairy protein.
(For the Post-Gazette)
Advertisement
LATEST news
Advertisement
TOP
Email a Story