Studies Show Calcium Supplements Ineffective for Osteoporosis, and May Even be Dangerous
Calcium supplementation for osteoporosis has increased significantly since 1987, after the National Institute of Health (NIH) recommended an increase in the daily intake of calcium to 1,500 mg for prevention of the condition. This was in spite of several studies showing no significant effect of calcium intake on porous bone tissue.
Osteoporosis, meaning “porous bone”, is a decrease in bone mass and density with an increased risk of fracture and has long been perceived as a problem of insufficient dietary calcium, one of the primary building blocks of bone. The condition occurs with aging in men and women but is seen most often in women following menopause.
Numerous studies have since shown that calcium supplements are virtually useless for preventing or treating osteoporosis, and that soft tissue calcification can be a serious risk factor when too much calcium enters the system and cannot be used by the body as nature intended. But calcium supplements continue to be heavily advertised for the purpose of preventing osteoporosis, and millions of women continue taking them.
Magnesium, however, is required by the body to utilize calcium correctly, as well as for many other vital functions. We cannot live without magnesium, and the lower the cellular level of magnesium, the faster disease states develop and the faster aging progresses.
A total dietary program emphasizing magnesium instead of calcium has proven effective for preventing bone loss.
Dr. Guy Abraham suggested that postmenopausal osteoporosis is predominately a chronic magnesium deficiency, facilitated by estrogen withdrawal during the postmenopausal period. To test the theory, 19 postmenopausal women on hormonal replacement therapy were given 500 mg calcium supplements (50% of RDA) and 600 mg of magnesium (200% of RDA). Serial bone density studies were conducted every 3 months. Subjects receiving the treatment showed an 11% increase in mean bone density versus 0.7% in the untreated group.
Results also showed that the magnesium-emphasized program resulted in bone densities 16 times greater than that of simple dietary advice. At the start of the study, 15 subjects were below the fracture threshold. After a year of treatment with magnesium supplementation, only 7 of them were below the fracture threshold.
Dr. Abraham also suggested raising the RDA of magnesium to 1000 mg/day and lowering the RDA for calcium to 500 mg/day. His proposed daily intake for calcium would be more in line with the World Health Organization’s “practical allowance” of 400 to 500 mg daily for adults. Such a reversal of the magnesium/calcium ratio would most probably lower the incidence and prevalence of many other degenerative diseases as well.
