Calcium- A Rock Vitamin

28 Dec

Posted by editor as Eating tips, Natural Nutrients, vitamins

There are many trace elements and minerals that are absolutely necessary for our health and well-being. One of the better known ones that is easy to take as a supplement or through the diet is calcium.

Calcium is the mineral that makes our bones strong and healthy – and our teeth! Without the mineral calcium, our bones would be wobbly and rubbery, so we would not be able to run fast and being active , carry loads or do the fine precision work made possible by rigid bones.

To see what would happen if you had no calcium in your bones, try this easy trick. Take a chicken bone and soak it for 24 hours in vinegar. The acid in the vinegar reacts with the calcium in the bone, making this mineral react and change so there is no calcium left in the bone. If you’ve soaked the bone thoroughly enough you should be able to tie a knot in it – it’s that flexible!

We all know that as we age, we run a greater risk of osteoporosis or brittle bones. This condition is exacerbated by loss of bone density – or loss of calcium. While, for women, it’s rather hard to make up for lost bone density after menopause, there’s plenty that you can do beforehand to prevent this happening.

Making sure that your diet is totally rich in the essential mineral calcium is vital to ensure good bone growth and healthy bone density. Dairy products are an excellent source of calcium especially the low-fat varieties. In the old days, parents used to make sure that children drank plenty of milk to make sure that they got the calcium they needed to grow strong and tall. And this is one old wives’ tale that’s right! Milk is good for growing bones – and so are cheese, yoghurt and (hooray!) ice cream.

But common sense will tell you that dairy products, have more in them than just the mineral calcium. Ice cream is high in fat and sugar, cheese and milk can be high in fat. You don’t want to have to trade off between diabetes and osteoporosis! You may want to switch to low-fat varieties to make sure you get a good daily supply of this mineral, but you may also want to try a calcium supplement.

A calcium supplement can come in powder or in tablet form. This mineral also is a component of chalk so the powder can have a dry, chalky taste. If you find this texture or taste unpleasant, then it can be easily mixed in with other food to make it more palatable. My mother is a great believer in taking calcium and other minerals, and when I was a child, she used to add calcium powder (or ground up tablets) to peanut butter sandwiches for us.

There are other things you can do to make sure that you get enough of the mineral calcium in your diet. Vitamin C helps the body to absorb this mineral so make sure that when you take your calcium supplement that you also take a good source of Vitamin C at the same time. Orange juice is an obvious source of Vitamin C, but tablets are also a solution. Good old Mom used to call the Vitamin C tablets “sun pills” and the calcium tablets “moon pills”, making sure we always associated the vitamin with the mineral.

Vitamin D also helps the body absorb calcium and lack of Vitamin D causes rickets, with is associated with abnormal bone growth because the body can’t absorb the mineral properly. Sunshine is a free source of Vitamin D, but do remember to be sun-smart and not get burnt. For Caucasians, ten minutes’ exposure on the arms and face is enough sunlight to get the Vitamin D you need for good calcium uptake.

Exercise is also important. You can take all the calcium supplements in the world, but unless you tell your body it needs the mineral, it won’t be used. So exercise! Weight-bearing exercise is best for good bone density walking, weights and dancing are ideal – or jumping rope.

Other helpful information available on web:

1. Vitamin C Deficiency
2. Calcium Benefits

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Tags:calcium calcium supplements calcium carbonate calcium rich foods calcium hydroxide vitamins minerals vitamin vitaminD