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Furthermore, boosting overall calcium intake from dietary sourcesconfers no significant advantage in terms of staving off heartdisease and stroke, the findings indicate. Previous research has linked higher calcium intake with a loweredrisk of high blood pressure, obesity, and type 2 diabetes, all ofwhich are risk factors for heart disease and stroke. And calcium supplements are commonly recommended to elderly peopleand women who have gone through the menopause to prevent bonethinning. The authors base their findings on almost 24,000 participants ofone of the German arms of the European Prospective Investigationinto Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study in Heidelberg. All the participants were aged between 35 and 64 when they joinedthe study in 1994-8. Normal diet for the preceding 12 months was assessed using foodfrequency questionnaires and they were quizzed about whether theyregularly took vitamin or mineral supplements. Their health was tracked for an average of 11 years, during whichtime 354 heart attacks, 260 strokes, and 267 associated deathsoccurred. After taking account of factors likely to influence the results,those whose diets included a moderate amount (820 mg daily) ofcalcium from all sources, including supplements, had a 31% lowerrisk of having a heart attack than those in the bottom 25% ofcalcium intake. But those with an intake of more than 1100 mg daily did not have asignificantly lower risk. There was no evidence that any level ofcalcium intake either protected against or increased the risk ofstroke, which backs up the findings of other research, say theauthors. But when the analysis looked at vitamin/mineral supplements, itfound that those who took calcium supplements regularly were 86%more likely to have a heart attack than those who didn't use anysupplements. And this risk increased further among those who used only calciumsupplements. They were more than twice as likely to have a heartattack as those who didn't take any supplements. The authors conclude: "This study suggests that increasingcalcium intake from diet might not confer significantcardiovascular benefits, while calcium supplements, which mightraise [heart attack] risk, should be taken with caution." In an accompanying editorial, Professors Ian Reid and Mark Bollandfrom the Faculty of Medical and Health Science at the University ofAuckland in New Zealand, say that the safety of calcium supplements"is now coming under increasing scrutiny." They point to previous research, showing a link between thesesupplements and kidney stones, and gut and abdominal symptoms, andnote that while trial evidence suggests that calcium supplementscut levels of cardiovascular risk factors, this doesn't actuallytranslate into fewer heart attacks and strokes. They also suggest that many women taking calcium supplements toward off brittle bones are already healthier than those who don't,and that the overall protective effect is modest -- in the order ofjust 10%. The evidence that dietary calcium is helpful while calciumsupplements are not can be explained by the fact that dietarycalcium is taken in small amounts, spread throughout the day, so isabsorbed slowly, they say. Supplements, on the other hand, cause calcium levels in the bloodto soar above the normal range, and it is this flooding effectwhich might ultimately be harmful, they suggest. "Calcium supplements have been widely embraced by doctors andthe public, on the grounds that they are a natural and thereforesafe way of preventing osteoporotic fractures," they write. "It is now becoming clear that taking this micronutrient inone or two daily [doses] is not natural, in that it does notreproduce the same metabolic effects as calcium in food," theysay. Given that it is neither safe nor effective, boosting calciumintake from supplements should be discouraged, they contend. And they conclude: "We should return to seeing calcium as animportant component of a balanced diet, and not as a low costpanacea to the universal problem of postmenopausal bone loss.". We are high quality suppliers, our products such as Tea Packaging Bags , Wet Wipes Packaging for oversee buyer. To know more, please visits Coffee Packaging Bags.
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