Do you take calcium for your bones? Some tips!

Do you take “calcium for bones”? Then read on:

Every time I see someone taking calcium-based supplements/medicines “to improve their bones”, often on prescription from health professionals and frequently together with alendronate, risedronate, ibandronate, pamidronate and zoledronic acid (bisphosphonates), I am sincerely worried...

I'll explain:

1 - When you only use large doses of one macromineral, such as calcium, you have a great chance of unbalancing dozens of the others (macro and even micro), especially sodium, magnesium, potassium, iron and zinc, by “pushing them out of the body” (the excessive entry of one of these usually causes the body to expel the others, in order to maintain a minimally compensated gradient of electrical charges within it), generating numerous adverse effects over time. Find out more about these minerals by searching for their names here:

https://www.medicinacomplementar.com.br/biblioteca10.php

2 - You can't guarantee that the calcium you take goes to the right and/or desired places if you don't have good lifestyle habits and a minimum of basic hormonal balance - these are two fundamental conditions for the body to know exactly where to put calcium (and other minerals), in what proportions and how much it should excrete. Otherwise, you run the risk of calcifying other, undesirable areas of the body, such as the arteries (thus gradually clogging them up), creating an increase in “bone calluses”, stiffening of “soft parts” (such as cartilage and tendons), etc. For example, it is regular physical exercise that teaches muscles and bones which minerals they need most, such as calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, ... Minerals reach the various parts of the body via the bloodstream and most of the blood is water... Nutrients depend on good nutrition and good intestinal health, minimally, in order to be absorbed and metabolized, ...

3 - It's “fashionable” to replace calcium alone, which in general is a mistake, but together with vitamin D (which is a hormone), but the doses of vitamin D used have been too small, derisory. The ideal is to measure vitamin D3-25-OH in the blood and, if it's low (it should usually be between 50 and 100 ng/ml, in most of the laboratories I know), advise the patient to get more sun regularly (with quality) and replenish it, often with initial doses much higher than those indicated out there. Add to this the fact that, in simplistic terms (so that we understand it better), active vitamin D helps the intestines absorb calcium, but then vitamin K2 becomes essential for the cells and tissues to “remove” it properly from the bloodstream. https://icaro.med.br/vitaminad/

4 - Are you interested in calcium because of issues related to osteoporosis and osteopenia? Then understand that what matters most for bone health, even before calcium, are water, proteins and a balance of hormones (including vitamin D)...

After that, of course, let's look at calcium and other minerals!

Most of the bone is water and proteins, not calcium: https://icaro.med.br/?s=osteoporose

5 - The use of bisphosphonates is associated with many side effects and often with bones full of calcium but still brittle (due to the lack of other important components... Bone isn't just calcium, remember?).

Is that clear?

It's up to you: do you still want to load up on calcium to “strengthen your bones”? Seek information and... Cheers!