Calcium Supplements Reduce Risk of Bone Fracture
Calcium supplementation alone, or in combination with vitamin D supplementation, reduces the risk of fractures in people older than 50 years by 12 percent, conclude authors of an article published in the August 25th issue of The Lancet.
Dr. Benjamin Tang of the University of Western Sydney, Sydney, Australia, and colleagues based their findings on a pooled analysis of previously published trials. In 17 trials that reported fracture as an outcome, 52,625 people were given supplements for an average of 3.5 years. They found that in those participants who stuck to the dosing regimen, fracture risk was reduced by 24 percent. The risk reductions were better with calcium doses greater than 1,200 mg and with vitamin D doses of 800 IU (international units) or more.
In 23 trials that reported bone density as an outcome in 41,419 participants, the authors found that calcium supplementation alone, or in combination with vitamin D supplementation, reduced the rate of bone loss at the hip by 0.54 percent and at the spine by 1.19 percent.
The authors conclude, “Our meta-analysis has shown that calcium supplementation, alone or in combination with vitamin D, is effective in the preventive treatment of osteoporotic fracture … poor compliance is a major obstacle to obtaining the full benefit of calcium supplementation.”
