• Description
• Functions
• Dietary sources
• Required Intakes

Description

Calcium is the most abundant mineral in the human body. Of the body's total calcium, about 99% is in the bones and teeth where it plays a structural role. The remaining 1% is present in body tissues and fluids where it is essential for cell metabolism, muscle contraction and nerve impulse transmission.

Functions

The main function of calcium is structural. The skeleton of a young adult male contains about 1.2 kg of calcium. There is continuous movement of calcium between the skeleton and blood and other parts of the body. This is finely controlled by hormones. Metabolites of Vitamin D are important in this, increasing reabsorption of calcium by bones.

Calcium also plays a role in cell biology. Calcium can bind to a wide range of proteins altering their biological activity. This is important in nerve impulse transmission and muscle contraction. Calcium is also needed for blood clotting, activating clotting factors.

Dietary sources

Calcium is present in a wide range of foods. Dairy products, leafy green vegetables, nuts and seeds (almonds, brazils, sesame seeds), tofu, and dried fruit are all good sources of calcium for vegetarians. Most flour is fortified with calcium carbonate so cereals can also be a good source. Hard water may also provide calcium. Meat is a very poor source of calcium.

Calcium balance can be affected by a range of other factors. Vitamin D is essential for absorption of calcium from the gut. This is because calcium is transported into the body by a special carrier protein which requires vitamin D for its synthesis.

A number of substances can inhibit the absorption of calcium. Phytic acid, found in bran, whole cereals and raw vegetables is one of these. Uronic acid, a component of dietary fibre, and oxalic acid, found in certain fruits and vegetables can also bind calcium. However, diets habitually high in these acids are not thought to have a major effect on calcium absorption. Saturated fats can also lessen calcium absorption.

Sources of calcium

Good sources	mg	Fair sources	mg	Poor sources	mg
Tofu (60g or 2oz)	304	Brown bread (2 slices)	70	Spaghetti, boiled (100g or 3½oz)	7
Cheddar cheese (slice, 40g)	288	Brazil nuts (9 nuts, 30g)	54	Brown rice (190g or 8oz)	7
Cows milk (0.3 pint)	234	Dried apricots (8 apricots)	46	-
Spinach, boiled (130g or 5oz)	208	French beans, boiled (100g)	41	-
Dried figs (4 figs)	168	Cottage cheese (45g or 1½oz)	33	-
Soya cheese (slice, 40g)	180	Sesame seeds (15g or ½oz)	20	-
Chick peas, boiled (200g or 8oz)	92	-		-
Baked beans (200g or 8 oz)	90	-		-
Broccoli, boiled (95g or 3½oz)	72	-		-

Calcium is now available in balanced mixture of minerals in form of a spray - Vitaminspray MULTIMINERAL..

The spray of colloidal minerals will provide you with 77 different essential minerals and microelements such as calcium , magnesium , iron , iodine , potassium , zinc , selenium , fluorine , phosphorus , etc.

All those minerals are supplied by the plants and for that reason they are available in colloidal form.That allows their quick absorption by the blood.

Required Intakes

During pregnancy, calcium absorption from the gut increases and no additional calcium is generally needed. Pregnant adolescents are an exception to this, having particularly high calcium needs.

Breast feeding women need an extra 550 mg of calcium. A lactating women can lose up to 300 mg a calcium/day in breast milk.

Calcium absorption decreases with age so it is important the elderly have adequate dietary calcium.