Review Study Placed Cloud of Doubt over Calcium Supplementation's Public Health Benefit

Filed in archive Studies on September 20, 2006

In a review study that concludes it to be of limited public health importance, it has been seen that the effects of calcium supplementation on bone density in healthy children is minimal.

University of Tasmania's Menzies Research Institute researchers conducted the analysis under the umbrella of osteoporosis prevention, the findings of which as mentioned above could lead to consumer confusion if the limitations are not cleared.

The findings could bring negative attention to calcium supplements by discrediting their effectiveness in the public eye; however industry advocates are likely to question just how much weight can be given to meta-analyses of studies which may be of varying quality.

The researchers highlighted the following as limitations:

• few of the studies analyzed were conducted on children with low baseline intakes.


• limited numbers of studies in purely postpubertal and peripubertal children.

Overall, the study found calcium supplementation had little effect on bone mineral density, except for a small benefit on the upper limb.

This represented a 1.7 percentage point increase in bone mineral density - which continued even after supplementation was halted - in the supplement group compared with the control group.

The study highlights this increase in density is unlikely to result in significant fracture reduction.

Osteoporosis, a disease resulting in deterioration of bone tissue, increased bone fragility and risk of fracture is growing in an alarming rate especially in women so that the need in finding a public health solution for low bone density is hugely considerable.

While the literature surrounding osteoporosis suggests that it is a preventable disease that could be avoided by a rich diet of calcium and Vitamin at a young age, still the fact remains that there are tons of issues that need to be clarified about the supplementation of calcium.

The study mentioned above, entitled "Effects of calcium supplementation on bone density in healthy children: meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials", is published in this month's issue of British Medical Journal (doi:10.1136/bmj.38950.561400.55).

Read more at NutraIngredients.