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Integrative Medicine Practitioners.
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This month’s edition:
The Truth About Calcium and Coral Calcium
The beautiful coral reefs that surround tropical islands serve as a
home for one fourth of all marine species. Coral reefs also protect
shorelines from erosion. Sadly, coral reefs are an endangered
ecosystem due to global warming, over development, and pollution. If
things don't change, 70% of the world's coral reefs will die during
our lifetimes, according to the Nature Conservancy.
Coral reefs now face a new threat from slick entrepreneurs, like
Robert Barefoot, who are mass-marketing calcium derived from the
coral. These clever marketers have been able to persuade many people
that the way to live longer and avoid health problems such as
osteoporosis, diabetes, and cancer is to eat coral sand! The
ridiculous implication is that Mother Nature was so shortsighted in
her plans to supply us with the calcium and other minerals we need
that we now have no choice but to collect coral sand from the coral
reefs of Okinawa and other islands.
Some companies marketing coral calcium advertise that it contains a
2 to 1 calcium/magnesium ratio, believed by some experts to be
ideal. However, according to Bruce W. Halstead, M.D., research
scientist, director of the International Biotoxicological Center,
and author of the book, Fossil Stony Coral Minerals and Their
Nutritional Application, "All coral samples I have analyzed
have a calcium/magnesium ratio of 50 to 1. If Mother Nature had
intended for us to eat ground coral, she would have added magnesium
to it."
Laboratory analysis of marine coral calcium shows it to contain
toxic heavy metals such as mercury. Companies can heat-treat the
coral to vaporize the heavy metals, but this alters the molecular
structure of the minerals. Some companies are marketing
"eco-friendly" coral calcium taken from above-sea Okinawan
coral which they then add magnesium to. Why bother? Mother Nature
has provided us with many convenient sources of the calcium and
other minerals we need. Besides, the hype around coral calcium
originated from observations about the longevity of the Okinawan
people, which marketers have alleged is due to the mineralized water
they drink that flows through fossilized coral beds. Although this
water is much healthier than urban tap water, the healthier water
alone does not explain their longevity. Consideration must be given
to the overall Okinawan lifestyle and diet, which is far healthier
than that of "westernized" countries.
So, what are the best sources of calcium and the other minerals we
need? First of all, let's establish how much calcium we need by
taking a look at various small civilizations on earth regarding
osteoporosis:
Native Eskimos have the highest dietary intake of calcium of any
people in the world - more than 2,000 mg. per day, from fish bones.
Yet they have one of the highest rates of osteoporosis in the world.
In contrast, African Bantu women consume only 350 mg. of calcium per
day. They bear an average of nine children during their lifetimes
and breast feed them for two years. They seldom break a bone, rarely
lose a tooth, and even their oldest women are essentially free from
osteoporosis! Their children grow up healthy and strong. The dairy
industry has said that the Bantus' far higher bone densities from
much lower calcium intakes may be due to genetic factors. But
genetic relatives of the Bantus living in the United States and
eating the standard American diet have the same levels of
osteoporosis as their American neighbors.
Osteoporosis is most common in exactly those countries where dairy
products are consumed in the largest quantities - the United States,
Finland, Sweden, and the U.K. The obvious conclusion one can arrive
at from these anomalies is that high calcium intake alone does not
prevent osteoporosis! In fact, many studies performed during the
past 70 years consistently show that the most important dietary
change we can make if we want to maintain a healthy calcium balance
is to decrease our intake of excessive protein and other
acid-forming foods.
Most people consume several times more protein than the body
requires, which in turn creates too much acidity in the blood. The
body is then forced to neutralize that acidity by transferring
calcium and other alkalinizing minerals from the bones to the blood.
The higher your protein intake is, the higher your potential loss of
minerals that are vital to bone density and many other systems,
e.g., cardiovascular, nervous system, immune system, etc.
Some of the best sources of calcium do not come from dairy and other
animal sources. The best sources are from the plant kingdom, where
the ideal calcium/phosphorous ratio promotes higher absorption of
calcium. It's also very important to note that when we depend upon
plant sources for our calcium we automatically consume other very
important disease-fighting nutrients that we would otherwise be
missing if we depended on coral or dairy sources for calcium.
For example, vegetables like broccoli, collards, spinach, chard, and
kale are excellent sources of calcium, as well as magnesium
(prevents strokes and heart attacks), chlorophyll (blood purifier),
and carotenoids (anti-cancer, promotes eye health). These vegetables
also have a strong alkalinizing effect, which helps us to retain our
bone support minerals rather than leaching them out by eating too
many acidifying foods.
These vegetables are also good sources of trace minerals, so named
because we only need tiny trace amounts of them. Proponents of coral
calcium (which is rich in trace minerals) make the valid point that
some farm soil in America has become depleted of these minerals and
therefore vegetables are not a dependable source of trace minerals.
However, legumes such as alfalfa that develop root systems up to 80
feet deep are dependable sources. Or you can take a tablespoon every
other day of liquid trace minerals derived from the ancient seabeds
of areas like Utah. Make sure the arsenic and aluminum have been
removed - although these are natural trace minerals, our culture
has consumed abnormally high levels already and we should avoid
further consumption. I recommend liquid colloidal minerals. If
you're interested in alfalfa as a mineral source, you can opt to
use alfalfa in the Wellness Smoothie.
So, do you need to take extra calcium in pill form? It depends on
your diet and lifestyle. If your stress level is low and 75% or more
of your food is alkalinizing, you probably do not need supplemental
calcium. If you do not know which foods are alkalinizing, call our
office to order the handout of Alkalinizing Foods. Because almost
all of us were raised on a predominantly acidifying diet it takes
time to make the conversion to alkaline, and therefore
supplementation with calcium and other minerals is justified and
necessary.
Many people purchase inexpensive calcium carbonate, which is very
difficult to absorb. My calcium recommendations are specific to the
needs of my clients who seek counseling from me, but I always choose
from among the many high absorption forms of calcium, such as
calcium citrate-malate. I usually recommend calcium in combination
with magnesium and the other nutrients that are vital to overall
health and bone density, such as vitamin D. Cal+ is one example of
an effective formula I frequently recommend. If you prefer a liquid
formula for adding to juice or smoothies, I recommend Ionic
Calcium-Magnesium Liquid.
High quality multi-vitamin/mineral formulas always contain calcium,
magnesium, and other bone support nutrients. Therefore, this must be
taken into consideration when evaluating your mineral needs. If you
want more information about non-animal sources of calcium, we will
include a list of the top 120 food sources for calcium with your
next order upon request.
Another product I frequently recommend helps people to maintain an
alkaline balance, especially when under stress or eating/drinking
acid foods, especially meat, coffee, alcohol, fried foods, and
sweets. It's called AlkaPro. It is a conveniently small pocket-sized
bottle of alkalinizing liquid concentrate. Place 2 drops (its taste
is neutral) in drinking water, coffee, tea, or alcoholic beverages.
Even purified tap water needs to be alkalinized. Water ionizers can
be purchased as an alternative, but in comparison to using the
AlkaPro drops, it would take 5 years before the water ionizer
investment would pay off.
Finally, there is one more important consideration in regard to
calcium and other minerals. Malabsorption, a condition caused by
insufficient gastrointestinal function, is rampant in westernized
countries and affects about 80% of the people who I have given
counseling to during my career. If you have malabsorption, the
amount of minerals you can absorb can be significantly reduced,
especially calcium, magnesium, iron, chromium (regulates blood
sugar), and zinc (prostate health, immune function, eyes).
Therefore, in order to arrive at the appropriate use of mineral
supplements and dietary guidelines this must always be taken into
consideration.
Malabsorption will be addressed in depth in one of
our next newsletters.
In the meantime, if you suspect you have malabsorption or you are
taking medicine that blocks your stomach acid production, we recommend
an introductory 30 minute nutritional analysis and
consultation.
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