Your parathyroid glands help to maintain normal blood calcium levels -- between 8.5 to 10.2 mg per deciliter of blood. The parathyroid gland releases parathyroid hormone when blood calcium levels dip below 8.5 mg/dL, which causes the body to...
Around 4 to 5 million people in the United States undergo colonoscopy, a procedure done under sedation that examines the inner lining of the colon, the lower part of the intestine, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality reports....
Sevelamer is used to lower high phosphate levels in people undergoing dialysis (treatment to remove toxic substances from the body) due to chronic kidney failure. According to the Drugs website, sevelamer belongs to the class of drugs called...
When you consume and absorb calcium, a certain amount of it naturally passes from your system in your feces, urine and sweat. If elimination through these pathways increases, there is the potential for you to deplete or decrease your calcium...
Hypocalcemia means low levels of calcium in the blood. Calcium is an important electrolyte in the body. An electrolyte is an electrically charged mineral. Several electrolytes are found in the blood, including sodium, potassium, phosphate,...
Your kidneys receive a large supply of blood per hour. They play important roles in regulating the composition of blood, such as the levels of water and electrolytes such as phosphate. Kidney damage interferes with kidney functioning and can lead...
Even though you can't see them, electrolytes-- minerals that carry electrical changes-- continually move across cell membranes to maintain a balance between your cells and your blood. Electrolytes in your body include bicarbonate, calcium,...
Phosphorus is an essential mineral, meaning that your body needs it but cannot synthesize it, so you must obtain it through dietary sources. Phosphorus is found in many common foods, so dietary deficiencies are rare. A more common problem is too...
Citracal is a brand name for the supplement calcium citrate. It may be taken by children or adults for several conditions. It may be taken to help treat low calcium levels or high phosphate levels. It may be used as an antacid if a person has...
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD, is a chronic condition that affects up to 5 percent of school-aged children, according to the University of Maryland Medical Center. It may also continue into adulthood. Although symptoms are...
Pay attention to phosphates and potassium in your diet if you suffer from certain medical conditions. An excess or deficiency of potassium can create serious medical problems if you have heart failure because your kidneys can no longer regulate...
Your child may require calcium citrate to reduce high phosphate levels or to treat low calcium levels. Calcium citrate is available without a prescription, but its safety and effectiveness for use in children has not been confirmed, according to...
Foscarnet is an antiviral medication used to treat cytomegalovirus retinitis (type of eye infection affecting AIDS patients) and herpes simplex virus (HSV). According to Drugs.com, it arrests viral growth and multiplication. Foscarnet is an...
The blood consists of cells and a fluid portion containing proteins and electrically charged minerals known as electrolytes. One such electrolyte is calcium. As with the other electrolytes, the levels of calcium in the blood are restricted to a...
Calcium and phosphate are minerals that are important for many functions in the body. The levels of calcium and phosphate are tightly regulated physiologically in order to perform these functions. Diseases can disrupt normal calcium and phosphate...
Your body needs to get a certain amount of minerals to work properly. Some of these minerals, known as electrolytes, play an important role in regulating electrical activity in muscle tissue, such as the heart. Low levels of electrolytes can be...
Your kidneys act as your body's filter, removing toxins from the blood. When you have kidney disease and your kidney function is impaired, your body can no longer filter properly. In this case, your physician recommends dialysis, a mechanical...
Phosphate is a chemical salt of phosphoric acid. Phosphorus is essential to cellular functions in your body, but approximately 85 percent is present in your bones in the form of phosphate, according to Colorado State University. Phosphate and...
The United States is the leading country in soft drink intake, with an average consumption of approximately 15 oz. per day, according to The Encyclopedia of Natural Medicine. Although most people assume that drinking diet soda is an effective way...
The kidneys are vital organs that basically filter the blood to make urine. They are responsible for regulating blood volume, mineral balance including calcium, vitamin D synthesis, signaling the bones to make red blood cells, controlling blood...
Renal failure, the medical term for kidney disease, can occur as an acute or chronic disease process. Chronic kidney failure can develop after years of kidney disease that slowly damaged the kidneys. Symptoms of kidney failure normally don't...
Renal failure is a term used to describe rapid or gradual loss of normal function in your kidneys. Normally your kidneys help regulate your body's levels of several important minerals, including magnesium, phosphorus and potassium. However, if...
Magnesium is used often used as a medication. It is used as an antacid and to treat ailments such as constipation, magnesium deficiency, some irregular heart rhythms, and high blood pressure and protein in the urine during pregnancy. Sometimes too...
Calcium and potassium are two essential dietary minerals that also act as electrolytes, or electrically charged ion particles, in your body. Calcium is necessary for lifetime skeletal development and repair. Potassium allows your heart to sustain...
Phosphorus is a mineral found in a wide variety of foods. When you eat these foods, your body takes their phosphorus content and creates a related substance called phosphate. Most of this phosphate is held in your bones; however, a small...
According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), vitamin B3 consists of niacin (nicotinic acid) and its amide (an organic compound) niacinamide. It is contained in a variety of foods such as cereal grains, green vegetables, meat, eggs and...
Certain medical conditions such as diabetes and kidney disease require that people suffering from these diseases limit their intake of foods high in potassium and phosphorus (commonly known as phosphate). However, other medical conditions such as...
Kidneys maintain a balance of calcium in the body. During renal (kidney) failure, this mechanism no longer works effectively. Too much calcium in the blood causes hypercalcemia, which leads to a cascade of negative reactions on chemicals and...
The majority of calcium and phosphate in your body is present in bone mineral. Patients with kidney disease can have higher than normal calcium and phosphate levels. Elevated calcium and phosphate symptoms are varied depending the part of the body...
