The calcium supplement section of the drug or health-food store can be intimidating, as so many different kinds of calcium are available, at several different price points. If you're looking for the best quality calcium, you'll need to take into account the type of calcium a supplement contains. This is because your body absorbs some types of calcium more effectively than others. Further, some calcium supplements have benefits beyond simply serving as a source of this important mineral.
Calcium in the Body
Calcium is a micronutrient, and more specifically, a mineral. Micronutrients are components of diet that serve vital roles, but don't provide energy. Minerals are a subcategory of micronutrients, and include a variety of metallic elements such as calcium and sodium. You need calcium to help regulate your heartbeat and produce muscular contractions, explains Dr. Lauralee Sherwood in her book "Human Physiology." Your bones also contain calcium -- they're comprised of a calcium-based salt. Calcium deficiencies can weaken the skeletal system and result in bone deformities.
Calcium Sources
Calcium lactate and calcium carbonate are both calcium salts. All sources of dietary calcium occur as salts, meaning that they consist of positively charged particles of calcium combined with negatively charged particles of variable identity. The identity of the negatively charged particle in a calcium salt affects the solubility of the calcium, but doesn't change the activity of the calcium in the body. For supplementation purposes, it's best to choose the most soluble calcium salts available, but less-soluble salts can have other desirable chemical properties.
Calcium Lactate
Calcium lactate is among the most soluble of the calcium supplement salts. It occurs naturally in milk and other dairy products, but you can also purchase calcium lactate pills -- they're typically among the more expensive of the calcium supplements. Both men and women need at least 1,000 mg of calcium a day, according to MayoClinic.com. If you consume plenty of calcium-containing food, including dairy and leafy greens, you may not need additional supplementation. For those needing supplements, however, calcium lactate is a particularly good choice because the body absorbs it so well.
Calcium Carbonate
Calcium carbonate is among the least expensive -- and least well absorbed -- forms of calcium available. Actually, calcium carbonate occurs in nature and in everyday life; it's the principle salt that forms seashells, limestone rock and chalk. You can also buy calcium carbonate supplements; for instance, oyster shell calcium is calcium carbonate. While calcium carbonate isn't particularly well absorbed, it does have the advantage of being an effective antacid due to the presence of the carbonate particle, which reacts with excess stomach acid. As such, if you use Tums or another calcium-carbonate-containing antacid, you're getting some calcium supplementation while treating your symptoms.
References
- "Human Physiology"; Lauralee Sherwood, Ph.D.; 2004
- MayoClinic.com: Calcium
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