I’m eating Dirt?
Which Calcium Does Your Body Use?
Therapeutic Tuesday – Calcium
There are two forms of Calcium used in our foods and vitamin supplements.
- Calcium Carbonate is basically limestone (dirt – yuck).
- Calcium citrate is plant-based (much better).
Of the two, I think I’d really prefer to make sure I’m taking in Calcium Citrate over Carbonate – really, if we were meant to eat dirt…it would taste better.
But, Calcium in either form doesn’t work alone. Even in its more digestible form, in order for our bodies to gain maximum benefit from the calcium we eat it needs be in a two to one ratio with magnesium and it requires four cofactors: silicon, boron, Vitamin D, and Vitamin K.
Approximately ninety-nine percent of the body’s calcium is stored in the bones and teeth.
Foods naturally high in calcium include seaweeds such as kelp, wakame, hijiki; nuts and seeds (like almonds and sesame); blackstrap molasses, beans; oranges, figs, quinoa, amaranth, collard greens, okra, rutabaga, broccoli, dandelion leaves; and klae.
What about milk?
Milk’s available calcium is cut in half through the process of pasteurization. Low-fat milk makes calcium unabsorbable because fat is an essential part of the transportation and absorption of calcium. The countries consuming the greatest amount of calcium through milk products are suffering the most from calcium deficiencies. And now, we can see why. My son hasn’t had milk since he weaned himself from the bottle at age two. He’s in the 75% for height and weight. He’s tall and lean and growing like a weed. Where does he get his calcium? Cheese, yogurts, and the like.
If you’re choosing supplements, make sure you’re looking for ones that have BOTH forms of Calcium (as citrate and carbonate) – plus a blend of Vitamin D, Vitamin K, Magnesium, and silicon and boron. (And, just my suggestion, milk is over rated. We’re the only animal on the planet drinking it after being weaned from our mother’s milk as babies. That really should tell us something.)
