Calcium Supplements

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Jan18
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Calcium Supplements

Post by Jan18 »

Hi all,
I would like input on calcium supplements. I also quit them years ago (as Floramaria and another poster were discussing in a thread here about oxylates) having heard they cause plaque issues. A good friend of mine who was doing a stress test, was told in the middle of it to stop, and her doctor called an ambulance to take her to the hospital. She had a blocked artery and needed a stent. Her doctor told her to stop taking calcium supplements.

Fast forward to this year: I have osteopenia in my hip (just diagnosed) and asked about calcium. I was told by my internist that NOT taking supplements was ONLY for people who had been diagnosed with cardiovascular problems already (hence, my friend). My cardiologist concurred.

Now, with minimal dairy (I only eat sheep's milk varieties, usually just a little in eggs sometimes) I am wondering if the scant amounts of calcium in my diet (smaller amounts from a variety of food, but total is nowhere near the 1200mg. they recommend for my age) has led to my osteopenia?

I'm wondering if I should get back on the calcium supplements, as I cannot get the recommended daily amount with my diet. Yes, I eat salmon and lots of veggies containing calcium, but on 1200 calories (I need to lose some weight) it isn't nearly that much.

And calcium is crucial for heart health and other things, too.
Last edited by Jan18 on Mon Sep 12, 2022 5:09 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Calcium Supplements

Post by Quantifier »

Have you looked at plant-based milk? The almond milk I drink has 600 mg calcium per cup (and only 35 calories).
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Re: Calcium Supplements

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Thank you for the suggestion, Quantifier, but almond milk hurts my stomach. I tried it for about a week in even just small amounts to substitute for half and half in coffee. Developed stomach pains when I'd drink it.

Lectins, I thought, but research says only the skins of almonds have lectins. So I don't know why.

I could try it again, but I don't know where I'd drink a cup of that, as for beverages, I only drink water or coffee (only a cup or cup and a half a day). Maybe make a smoothie every day, but that would take some balancing, since lots of stuff put into smoothies are high carb, like fruits....

Hmmmm....wonder if I should try it again?
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Re: Calcium Supplements

Post by Quantifier »

There are many plant-based milk substitutes. Maybe on of the other kinds works better for you? Just make sure they actually contain calcium.
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Re: Calcium Supplements

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I received the osteoporosis diagnosis this year. I am thin and 59 years old, so the diagnosis was not a surprise. This is what my ReCode doc and I put together:

Increase estrogen. The goal is to raise estradiol to 80 - 110. At the last test, I was at 23.
LEF bone strength collagen formula
magnesuim
trace minerals
K2 - super important to get calcium into bones instead of arteries
I had a CAC scan (I think that is what it is called) to see if I had any plaque buildup. I don't. It is really irritating to find out that this $150 scan is available, but docs don't mention it because insurance doesn't cover it. In any case, perhaps you should get one to see if you have an issue, since you are concerned.
I get about 700 mg of calcium from food - my latte and my yogurt, in the am. It is A2 pasture raised cow's milk
I use a vibration plate daily due to anecdotal stories about it being good for bone health. My doc said it wouldn't hurt, so I thought, why not try it.
I lift weights at least 4 - 5 days per week. Tonal makes it fun. Last year, I lifted the equivalent of a Boeing 747. Hilarious.

Maybe some of the above would be helpful for you? I won't know the impact for a couple of years.
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Re: Calcium Supplements

Post by floramaria »

Jan18 wrote: Mon Sep 05, 2022 3:15 pm I would like input on calcium supplements. I also quit them years ago (as Floramaria and another poster were discussing in a thread here about oxylates) having heard they cause plaque issues.
Hi Jan18, I also have osteopenia. And on the advise of my doctor I’ve started to take some Ca in Supplements and also eating more dairy. Because my cholesterol is high, my request for a CAC was honored and paid for by insurance. My CAC is Zero, which makes me not as concerned about Ca as I was before.
The specific supplement recommended by my doctor was AlgaeCal. She says she has seen DEXA scans improve in patients taking it. On the AlgaeCal website they have a
Stronger Bones Guarantee. They will refund all the money you have spent on their supplements if you take AlgaeCal and their Strontium Boost product continuously between DEXA scans, for a minimum of 6 months, and do not see an increase in bone density.
I haven’t gone for it because in the back of my mind there is some red flag waving about Strontium. I have not really looked into it though. I’ll let you know if I do.
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Re: Calcium Supplements

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Quantifier wrote: Mon Sep 05, 2022 4:07 pm Have you looked at plant-based milk? The almond milk I drink has 600 mg calcium per cup (and only 35 calories).
Hey Quantifier....did some research and found out the carrageenan (thickener) in almond milk can indeed cause stomach issues. Guess that's what hurt my stomach.

And so far, I haven't found a milk substitute that doesn't have a lot of saturated fat. We Apoe4's are supposed to really limit that, aren't we? At least that what I remember and what I am trying to do.

So I haven't found something yet.
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Re: Calcium Supplements

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floramaria wrote: Tue Sep 06, 2022 8:40 pm
Hi Jan18, I also have osteopenia. And on the advise of my doctor I’ve started to take some Ca in Supplements and also eating more dairy. Because my cholesterol is high, my request for a CAC was honored and paid for by insurance. My CAC is Zero, which makes me not as concerned about Ca as I was before.
The specific supplement recommended by my doctor was AlgaeCal. She says she has seen DEXA scans improve in patients taking it. On the AlgaeCal website they have a
Stronger Bones Guarantee. They will refund all the money you have spent on their supplements if you take AlgaeCal and their Strontium Boost product continuously between DEXA scans, for a minimum of 6 months, and do not see an increase in bone density.
I haven’t gone for it because in the back of my mind there is some red flag waving about Strontium. I have not really looked into it though. I’ll let you know if I do.
Hi Floramaria!
Thanks for the info. I guess I'll ask my cardiologist what calcium is best absorbed that he would recommend. I think I need to take one a day (500-600mg) to supplement what I get in food....but even then, it might not be 1200mg....so I'm considering ways to get 6 oz of yogurt in a day (311mg Calcium)....

I have zilch sex hormones left, 24 years after a complete hysterectomy so I am looking into bioidentical HRT. I was one in the generation that was frightened away from it by the flawed Women's Health Initiative. My endocrinologist and I were using estrogen from yams (bioidentical) but I still stopped it when I guess I should have continued. From what I've read, testosterone helps with bone density, too.

My question is: When bone shows more density, is it new bone or reabsorbed old bone which is not nearly as strong as new bone? My mom tried Fosamax in her early 70's (she died in 2016 at 2 months shy of 91 -- but had broken both hips and crushed a wrist when she fell). It didn't agree with her. It led me to do some research and I found out that the improvement in bone density it was affecting was reabsorbed old bone, so not nearly as good as forming new bone.

Do you know anything about this as far as reports of increased bone density these days with substances meant to do that?
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Re: Calcium Supplements

Post by floramaria »

Jan18 wrote: Mon Sep 12, 2022 5:29 pm

Hi Floramaria!
Thanks for the info. I guess I'll ask my cardiologist what calcium is best absorbed that he would recommend. I think I need to take one a day (500-600mg) to supplement what I get in food....but even then, it might not be 1200mg....so I'm considering ways to get 6 oz of yogurt in a day (311mg Calcium)....

I have zilch sex hormones left, 24 years after a complete hysterectomy so I am looking into bioidentical HRT. I was one in the generation that was frightened away from it by the flawed Women's Health Initiative. My endocrinologist and I were using estrogen from yams (bioidentical) but I still stopped it when I guess I should have continued. From what I've read, testosterone helps with bone density, too.

My question is: When bone shows more density, is it new bone or reabsorbed old bone which is not nearly as strong as new bone? My mom tried Fosamax in her early 70's (she died in 2016 at 2 months shy of 91 -- but had broken both hips and crushed a wrist when she fell). It didn't agree with her. It led me to do some research and I found out that the improvement in bone density it was affecting was reabsorbed old bone, so not nearly as good as forming new bone.

Do you know anything about this as far as reports of increased bone density these days with substances meant to do that?
Hi Jan18! I'll be really interested in hearing what calcium your cardiologist will recommend for you.

Like you, I'm part of the "totally scared of of bHRT generation". I remember reading about the WHI and thinking "Oh, No! I'll never do that!" a few years ago I had a chance to talk to Ann Hathaway at a conference after she'd done a presentation. She told me that if I were her patient, she'd put me on bHRT "tomorrow"even though I'd been through menopause several years earlier. You may be right about testosterone and bone density. Estradiol has been shown in many studies to help with bone density, and is the justification for my E2 patch prescription.

No way I can answer your question, ".....is it old bone or new bone?" From what I've heard and read, my impression of Fosamax is that I'd want to avoid it. But (uh-oh!) I cannot remember the specifics of why. Maybe for the reason you stated, that it is reabsorbed old bone? seems to me it was some other negative association.
Ideally we want to be building new bone. I'm still debating algaeCal, but haven't taken the leap because of the price.
And the strontium.
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Re: Calcium Supplements

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floramaria wrote: Mon Sep 12, 2022 10:50 pm
Hi Jan18! I'll be really interested in hearing what calcium your cardiologist will recommend for you.

Like you, I'm part of the "totally scared of of bHRT generation". I remember reading about the WHI and thinking "Oh, No! I'll never do that!" a few years ago I had a chance to talk to Ann Hathaway at a conference after she'd done a presentation. She told me that if I were her patient, she'd put me on bHRT "tomorrow"even though I'd been through menopause several years earlier. You may be right about testosterone and bone density. Estradiol has been shown in many studies to help with bone density, and is the justification for my E2 patch prescription.

No way I can answer your question, ".....is it old bone or new bone?" From what I've heard and read, my impression of Fosamax is that I'd want to avoid it. But (uh-oh!) I cannot remember the specifics of why. Maybe for the reason you stated, that it is reabsorbed old bone? seems to me it was some other negative association.
Ideally we want to be building new bone. I'm still debating algaeCal, but haven't taken the leap because of the price.
And the strontium.
You're lucky you got on it! Being 20 years after stopping my yam-derived (bHRT) estrogen, my OBGYN said the risk of blood clots with starting it up again at this age was too great. I wasn't scared of the study, because I'd read what was wrong with it and my endocrinologist concurred. I just made the decision to stop the estrogen since I would have been pretty much done with menopause after I'd been on it about 4 years. And my gynecologist never mentioned staying on it!!!! I bet my endocrinologist would have, but since I stopped the estrogen, I didn't see her anymore. :(

I'll do some more research on the improved dexa scans with bHRT to see if I can find out definitively if it is new bone growth with them and not reabsorbed old bone as I'd read with Fosamax. And when I talk to my cardiologist, I'll ask about calcium and let you know. In the meantime, I've added low-fat cheese and yogurt to my diet. Still doing the keto macro percentages, but need that calcium!
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