New results from 10 years of follow-up in an observational Canadian study show that calcium intake of up to 1000 mg/day from food or dietary supplements is more likely to be beneficial than harmful.
The findings, however, were significant only for women, not for men, report Lisa Langsetmo, MD, from McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, and colleagues in their paper, published online May 23 in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.
“We found in those women who were taking calcium supplements up to 1000 mg per day, as opposed to no supplements, there appeared to be a reduction in mortality. And there was a similar trend in individuals who were getting calcium from dietary sources rather than from supplements,” senior author David Goltzman, MD, from McGill University told Medscape Medical News.
The findings are reassuring, said Dr. Goltzman, because some prior research “has suggested that cardiovascular events — heart attacks and strokes — could be increased by calcium supplements.” And the new results are consistent with other findings from the Women’s Health Initiative, which also found a slight reduction in all-cause mortality with calcium, as did the Iowa Women’s Health Study, he noted.
However, the current research did not produce any
Read the rest of this article on Medscape: Calcium at 1000 mg/d Is Safe, Reduces Deaths, at Least in Women
