Risks Of Too Much Calcium

Calcium can help keep your bones strong, but too much can hurt you in other ways.

Americans are taking more calcium than ever. Sometimes this comes in the form of calcium rich foods. Other times it comes in the form of a multivitamin or supplement. But a new study is showing that too much calcium, for men, can increase their risk of heart problems and strokes.

Like all medications, if calcium is used correctly it can not only help keep our bones strong, but can also help keep us healthy. For most of us that means eating foods rich in calcium which includes dairy products, certain fish and calcium fortified foods like cereals and bread. The current recommendation is for us to take 1,000 milligrams a day as adults. For men over 70 and women over 50 you can push that to 1,200 milligrams a day.

But if we take in too much calcium, that too can cause problems, especially if we use supplements. We've known for a while that excess calcium supplements increases our chances of getting kidney stones. This new study is also showing that, for men, taking too much calcium can also increase their risk of heart problems. Researchers found that too much supplemental calcium, but not dietary calcium was responsible. As a matter of face, men taking in more than 1,000 milligrams a day of supplemental calcium had a 20% higher risk of dying from heart disease or strokes.

So, the bottom line from this study is for all of us, and men in particular, to make sure we don't take in too much calcium and to try and take most of that from the foods we eat every day.