Calcium is an essential mineral found mostly in your bones. Children need calcium for proper bone growth and structure. Although most children get plenty of calcium from their diet, particularly from foods like dairy products, soy, dark leafy greens and fortified juices or cereals, children who develop a deficiency may need to take a calcium supplement. Before you give your child a calcium or any supplement, consult a doctor to discuss the correct dosage and potential health dangers.
Function
Aside from being an essential mineral for your bones, calcium also plays an important role in the health of your teeth, muscles, hormones, enzymes, blood platelets and neurons, the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center explains. Specifically, calcium strengthens and grows bones, regulates the heartbeat, aids in muscle contraction, supports blood clotting and helps deliver nerve impulses, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center elaborates. Calcium also helps children to develop and grow healthy, strong teeth. Children who have a calcium deficiency may develop rickets, muscle spasms or pain and other health problems.
Benefits
Calcium supplementation could benefit children with attention-deficit disorder and periodontal disease, as well as those who suffer from migraine headaches, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center advises. Obese children and children who have hypoparathyroidism may also need to take calcium supplements, the University of Maryland Medical Center adds. Perhaps most importantly, calcium supplementation can help prevent and treat rickets, a condition that affects children and causes weak, soft bones, usually due to a calcium deficiency.
Dosage
The daily recommended intake of calcium for children 1 to 3 years old is 500 milligrams, while children 4 to 8 should get 800 milligrams of calcium per day, the University of Maryland Medical Center reports. Infants up to 6 months old need only 210 milligrams of calcium daily; those 7 months to 1 year need 270 milligrams. From ages 9 to 18, your child will need 1,300 milligrams of calcium each day. You will likely need to give your child extra vitamin D along with the calcium supplements, because this vitamin is necessary for proper calcium absorption, notes the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Also, your child's body can't absorb more than 500 milligrams of calcium at one time, so you may need to space doses throughout the day. Consult a doctor before giving your child calcium supplements at any dosage.
Considerations
Several different types of calcium supplements are available. Calcium carbonate is among the types of supplements that contain the most absorbable calcium and is often the least expensive, notes the University of Maryland Medical Center. This type of calcium supplement is usually taken with orange juice for best digestion and absorption. Calcium citrate is easier to absorb but contains less elemental calcium than the carbonate type, and can interact negatively with aluminum-containing antacids. Calcium lactate, gluconate, aspartate, orotate and malate are all very similar to calcium citrate, because they all belong to a group of supplements called chelated calcium and are made by binding the mineral to an organic acid, explains the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. There are also several natural types of calcium supplements, including bone meal, dolomite and oyster shell. Although these natural supplements can provide adequate elemental calcium, they could contain potentially dangerous amounts of lead.
Warning
If your child takes corticosteroids, isoniazid, anticonvulsants or heparin, she may need to take a calcium supplement, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center advises, because these medications can interfere with mineral absorption. Don't allow your child to take a calcium carbonate supplement at the same time of day as anticonvulsant drugs to prevent a negative interaction. Also, don't give your child more than the recommended dosage of calcium each day, because high doses of the mineral can cause kidney damage and kidney stones, and inhibit absorption of iron, zinc, magnesium and other minerals. Calcium supplementation can also inhibit your child's absorption of fluoride, as well as interact negatively with medications like bisphosphonates, cardiac glycosides, tetracyclines, 4-quinolones and tamoxifen, warns the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.
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