What is the best brand of calcium citrate? And a combination of calcium + magnesium (for osteoporosis)?

Question

The brand you will indicate should be available for online shopping, as I'm in Europe.

After research on the net and Yahoo questions, and on the basis of the valuable feedback I got from you, the best compromise of price, percentage of elemental calcium, and absorption seems to be calcium citrate (against orotate and ascorbate, too expensive). I read good things about amino acid chelates too. How do you rate these? Are they worth the extra money?

My bone density is terribly low (65% of my age class, I'm a 40 y old male), and I'm already having a small fracture on the "plateau tibial" that's lingering. So I'm tempted by exceeding the recommended dosage (on which, by the way, my doctors don't seem to agree, ranging between 1 to 2 grams a day). Would increasing the dosage speed up the reconstruction and my overall density? What are the risks of taking too much calcium? Or would the extra calcium just be eliminated?

At the moment I take 1g of calcium carbonate in the morning, 1g in the

Answer 1

I'm taking a generic brand of Calcium Citrate ( inexpensive at a 300 tablet supply) for my osteoporosis. However, Calcium is not potent enough without taking Vit D( sunshine) which enhances its absorption. The kind I take is Calcium Citrate with Vit D, Magnesium and Zinc . As these minerals have to be in balance with Calcium. Other minerals that are impt are iron and copper. And the dosage required is at least 1500 -2500 mgm/day. So even if you increase the dosage, it won't be effective if not taken with the other minerals esp VIT D.


Risks of taking too much calcium would be Hypercalcemia ( too much calcium in the blood). They interfere with calcium channel blockers taken for high blood pressure and Digoxin. Minimized absorption of other nutirents and minerals as calcium tend to compete with these. Calcium deposits in your kidneys leading to renal stones or calculi.known as calcium oxalates. You have to take good amts of fluids at least 8 glassfuls a day to flush your system. This is a form of calcium supplements. There is a new study that claim that dietary supplements are carcinogenic or can cause cancer.
The benefits do far outweigh the risks.


Calcium can also be obtained in its natural form( less side effects) thru the following foods::

Calcium Rich Foods
In addition to choosing foods from the following list,3 you should learn to look at food labels and simply choose foods that have a high %DV for calcium and at least 20% or more. You may find big differences in the calcium content of foods, even among different brands of the same foods, such as cheese, juice, and bread.
Yogurt, plain
Yogurt, fruit
Milk, low fat or nonfat
Milk, whole
Cheese, including American cheese, Ricotta cheese, Cheddar cheese, Mozzarella cheese, etc.
Milk shakes
Eggnog


Nondairy Foods with Calcium
Getting enough calcium can be a especially hard if your kids are allergic to milk. These nondairy foods can be good choices for people with milk allergies who need calcium:
Salmon
Tofu
Rhubarb
Sardines
Collard Greens
Spinach
Turnip Greens
Okra
White Beans
Baked Beans
Broccoli
Peas
Brussel Sprouts
Sesame Seeds
Bok Choy
Almonds


Calcium Fortified Foods
In addition to the large number of calcium rich foods that are naturally found, like milk and cheese, there are also a lot of foods that are now fortified with calcium. These can be especially good choices if you don't like to drink milk.
Calcium fortified breakfast cereal, including General Mills Whole Grain Total, Total Raisin Bran, Total Vanilla Yogurt, Total with Strawberries, and Total Honey Clusters, which have 100%DV of calcium per serving!
Calcium fortified orange juice
Calcium fortified soy milk
SunnyD with Calcium (most SunnyD products don't have calcium, so look for the one that does .
Instant oatmeal
Calcium fortified bread, English muffins, etc.
Calcium fortified drink mixes, such as Pediasure or Carnation Instant Breakfast
Other calcium fortified breakfast cereals, including General Mills Golden Grahams (350mg)
By learning to read food labels, you may be able to find other foods that are fortified with calcium.

Your health is worth the extra money!!!!

Answer 2

There is a big difference between the two as calcium carbonate is regarded as inorganic as the carbonate radical behaves as an inorganic radical even though carbonate (CO3) actually has carbon in it. Calcium citrate is organic and organic supplements are absorbed much better than inorganic supplements. So calcium citrate (organic) is much better than calcium carbonate (inorganic). There is a difference in price as well as calcium carbonate is much cheaper than calcium citrate. To get the same benefits you need much greater doses of calcium carbonate than calcium citrate (calculated as actual calcium).

Answer 3

Calcium Citrate Brands