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At the first signs of the development of osteoporosis, doctors recommend that the patient supplement his diet with a high-quality vitamin and mineral complex with the addition of calcium, because weakened joints and bones require constant support. Pharmacy counters are full of beautiful packages, and it’s not surprising to get confused: what are the criteria for choosing a good drug?
The vast majority of modern multivitamin and mineral complexes are made with the addition of calcium carbonate. This affordable substance is easily extracted from a variety of sources:
Limestone and dolomite deposits;
Shells and shells of crustaceans;
bones of mammals;
Eggshell.
Pharmaceutical companies that promote calcium carbonate in pharmacy chains are pushing in every possible way on the natural, natural origin of this chemical compound. But in this case, the word “natural” is not synonymous with the words “safe” and “effective”. Why? Let’s figure it out.
Carbonate or citrate: who wins?
Another bioavailable form of calcium is citrate. How is it better or worse than the usual carbonate? For the first time, American scientists tried to answer this question, searching for a cure for osteoporosis in women in menopause and post-menopause. Studies have shown that calcium citrate outperforms carbonate in three key ways:
It reduces the percentage of loss of calcium stores in the urine in the body of older women;
With the use of citrate, the concentration of calcium in the blood is higher;
Calcium citrate inhibits the secretion of parathyroid hormone – a substance responsible for age-related, hormonal leaching of calcium from female bones.
From this it is clear that women suffering from osteoporosis, it is better to take vitamin-mineral complexes with the addition of citrate, and not calcium carbonate. But in fact, such a recommendation can be given to any elderly person with weak bones. It’s all about the acidity of the stomach and the features of calcium absorption.
Absorption of calcium with low stomach acid
Almost half of people over the age of fifty have reduced or even insufficient stomach acid. What does this mean in practice? A person simply does not have the required amount of hydrochloric acid to dissolve and absorb calcium carbonate. After drinking a tablet of the drug, an elderly patient will receive only about two percent of the calcium contained there. And if the mineral complex were made on the basis of calcium citrate, the absorption rate would be at least forty, that is, the therapy would be 20 times more effective.
The disadvantages of calcium carbonate are not limited to poor absorption with low acidity of the stomach. It is also bad that an excess of unprocessed carbonate reduces the content of hydrochloric acid in gastric juice even more. This leads to bloating, colic, flatulence and constipation. And finally, we must not forget about the protective properties of hydrochloric acid: a sufficient level of this substance in the gastric secretion is the key to a healthy bacterial environment. And if there is little acid, microbes and fungi that enter the body with food get every chance of successful reproduction.
Biochemical Benefits of Calcium Citrate
So, we have enough “scolded” calcium carbonate. Now here are the specific benefits of citrate to make our position one hundred percent convincing:
Regular intake of calcium citrate in osteoporosis does not cause any side effects, except for those caused by cases of individual intolerance;
Citrate helps our body absorb other beneficial components of vitamin-mineral complexes, such as vitamin C and magnesium;
When it enters the human body, calcium citrate is divided into its constituent parts – calcium is absorbed by the skeleton, but citrate is involved in the so-called Krebs cell cycle. Simply put, it burns and gives us energy. When calcium carbonate is separated, only carbon dioxide remains – an absolutely unnecessary decay product;
Elderly people who, in addition to osteoporosis, are concerned about kidney problems, can safely recommend calcium citrate, because it alkalizes urine, which means it prevents the formation of sand and kidney stones, and prevents inflammatory processes from developing.
The competitive advantages of calcium citrate are well known to pharmaceutical companies, and some of them resort to tricks: they add calcium carbonate as the main component in their preparation, and put a tiny fraction of citrate, just to be able to mention this name on the label.
How not to become a victim of deception? Here are some recommendations:
Choose the medicine on the package of which only calcium citrate is listed, and there is no carbonate at all;
Carefully read the dosage and weight of the capsules. If it is said that one tablet or capsule contains, for example, the daily rate of active calcium for patients with osteoporosis is 200 mg, then this means that the tablet cannot weigh less than 1000 mg. The “carrier” itself is citrate – plus excipients and a shell – and as a result, the capsule will be quite large. A small tablet clearly indicates that either you have the wrong dosage in front of you, or the wrong substance – carbonate.
Detailed information about the beneficial properties of calcium in osteoporosis, its pharmacological forms and features of assimilation can be gleaned from the book: “The substances of life: calcium, magnesium and vitamin D. Moscow, 2005”