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How to increase calcium in the blood?
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
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The question of how to increase calcium in the blood is becoming more relevant, since calcium is one of the most important elements in the human diet.
Calcium is a structural component of bones, teeth, and soft tissues. It is very important in many metabolic processes of the body. Calcium accounts for 1 to 2% of the body weight of an adult, 99% of which is stored in bones and teeth. At the cellular level, calcium is used to regulate the permeability and electrical conductivity of biological membranes (for example, cell walls) that control muscle and nerve functions, gland and blood vessel secretions, and their elasticity. Calcium is also needed to provide blood clotting.
The average rate of calcium in the blood for an adult is 2.15 - 2.50 mol / liter. Reduction of this indicator is quite undesirable and can be a consequence of a number of dangerous diseases. In this case, you have to think about how to increase calcium in the blood.
With a sharp decrease in the level of calcium in the body, first of all, one should exclude such diseases as osteoporosis, diseases of the cardiovascular system, an increase in the thyroid gland, as well as the presence of malignant neoplasms. Unfortunately, the growth of these diseases among the population has become critical these days.
[Causes of decreased calcium in the blood
The list of reasons for the decrease in calcium in the body is quite extensive. First of all, it should be noted that calcium enters the body through food and water. Therefore, in our days the question of how to increase calcium in the blood, especially worried about people who abuse unbalanced diets and starvation. The risk zone also includes women during pregnancy and lactation, in the postmenopausal period, as well as children in the period of active growth. Excessive consumption of coffee, smoking and frequent stresses are also the reasons for a strong consumption of calcium. That's why it's so important to know how to increase calcium in the blood.
The causes of calcium loss may be digestive tract problems, such as intestinal dysbacteriosis, food allergies; diseases of the thyroid and parathyroid glands, kidney disease. With an unbalanced diet, the place of calcium in the body can take other chemical elements that do not allow the normal absorption of calcium. These include iron, sodium, potassium, phosphorus, magnesium, as well as lead and zinc. An important role in the digestibility of calcium is the presence in the body of a sufficient amount of vitamin D.
Symptoms of low blood calcium
The symptoms of low blood calcium in the blood do not usually keep you waiting long. First of all, the shortage of this trace element will react to bones and muscles, whose condition will deteriorate significantly. The bones become porous and brittle, caries appear, palpitations are observed, muscle spasms are observed. Also, the lack of calcium affects the health of other organs. In this case, the question arises: how to increase calcium in the blood?
People suffering from calcium deficiency look pale and sluggish, quickly get tired, and become lazy. They are more sensitive to cold weather. The most obvious symptom is sweating around the head even in cold weather. Nervousness and mental disorders can also be eloquent symptoms of decreased calcium in the blood.
Children born to mothers whose blood calcium levels were below the minimum norm usually also suffer from a shortage of this trace element. Calcium deficiency in such children becomes more noticeable if there is not enough storage of calcium, proteins, minerals and vitamins coming with whole milk, fresh fruits and vegetables.
Lacking sufficient amount of calcium, children cease to grow, the development of muscle tissue slows down. They have a poor appetite, and if fed by force, vomitive reflexes may appear. There are also frequent disorders of the stomach and diarrhea. Deficiency of calcium reduces the body's resistance. Such children become easy prey for respiratory and intestinal infections. Parents of such children need to know the information on how to increase calcium in the blood.
Deficiency of calcium in young girls causes later puberty, frequent malfunctions of the menstrual cycle, excessive bleeding, anemia. Resistance of the body against infections is reduced.
In case of insufficient calcium during pregnancy, fetal development continues, relying on reserve calcium from the mother's bones, which in the future can cause her serious illness. Bleeding, lack of breast milk, poor concentration of the mind, a long postpartum period are all common symptoms of low blood calcium after childbirth. In this case, a successful solution to the problem of how to increase calcium in the blood becomes especially relevant.
For older people, a lack of calcium in the blood can cause chronic diseases to worsen and problems of the cardiovascular system, since the work of the heart, the elasticity of blood vessels and nerve fibers are directly related to the balance of calcium in the blood.
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Treatment of low blood calcium
Treatment of decreased calcium in the blood should begin with the balancing of the diet. How to increase calcium in the blood? First of all, you should pay attention to providing the body with a number of vitamins, which contribute to the optimal assimilation of calcium.
Vitamin D, allowing the body to absorb calcium from the intestine, thanks to its interaction with proteins necessary for transporting calcium through the intestinal membrane into the bloodstream. Vitamin D also helps maintain the optimal balance of calcium and phosphorus in the process of mineralization of bone tissue.
Vitamin C also actively promotes the absorption of additional calcium and helps strengthen the body's resistance against harmful fungi and bacteria (for example, Candida fungi), which also interfere with the effective absorption of calcium.
Magnesium interacts with calcium in regulating the functioning of the cardiovascular system, muscle activity, blood and nervous systems. The optimum ratio of calcium to magnesium is 2: 1, while it is very important that the magnesium index does not exceed the upper permissible limits.
Lactose is found in dairy products, contributes to the absorption of calcium in the intestines in infants, although there is no evidence that this rule applies to adults.
As noted earlier, the diet is of paramount importance in deciding how to increase calcium in the blood. The main thing is to maintain its correct balance. For example, fats and proteins in our diet contribute to the absorption of calcium, but only if they are not used in excess. Popular diets based on a high protein diet since the late 1990s actually help to reduce total calcium absorption by increasing the rate at which calcium is absorbed from the body into the intestines.
Products that raise calcium in the blood
A lot has been said about the need for proper nutrition. But it is worth more detail on the list of products, will help increase calcium in the blood. People suffering from calcium deficiency, nutritionists recommend to include in their diet of dairy products. It is a variety of cheeses, yoghurts, milk (preferably, low-fat or low-fat), etc.
Non-dairy products can also be a source of calcium. These include: salmon, sardines, cabbage, tofu, rhubarb, spinach, turnips, caviar, white beans, broccoli, peas, Brussels sprouts.
It is not recommended to frequent consumption of foods with a high content of oxalic and phytic acids, as well as caffeine. Harm to these microelements for the body is in their property to block calcium.
In large quantities, oxalic acid is found in foods such as spinach, rhubarb, chocolate, cocoa, parsley, poppy, beets, chard, carambola, nuts, berries, and beans. There is a lot of oxalic acid in the leaves of tea, although fortunately for the lovers of this product, in the beverage oxalic acid is contained in very limited quantities, since not many leaves are used for brewing.
Phytic acid is another chemical element that inhibits calcium absorption. It is found in cereals, grains, seeds and nuts.
The level of phytic acid concentration can be reduced by thermal treatment of products, their soaking in acidic medium, fermentation or by germination of grains.
As an example, we can say that bread made from cereals, in fact, calcium does not interfere with digestion, because when yeast is added to the ferment of the test, phytic acid decomposes. It is important to note that phytin does not really refer to microelements that are harmful to humans, it simply suppresses the absorption of calcium. So the use of products with a high content of phytic acid is quite possible, but in limited quantities.
With caffeine, things are much the same. If you drink coffee in moderate doses, then caffeine has very little effect on the absorption of calcium. Reduce and compensate for the loss of calcium is possible if you add one or two tablespoons of milk to the coffee.
Tablets that raise calcium in the blood
How to increase calcium in the blood with tablets? Take pills that raise calcium in the blood, you must be very careful. It is important to adhere to the instructions and advice of doctors, since the excess of calcium in the blood is no less dangerous than its lack.
There are established rates of calcium intake per day (including the calcium that was ingested with food). Children aged 1 to 3 years need 500 mg, from 4 to 8 years - 800 mg; adolescents, up to 18 years of age, need 1300 mg; adults in the age of 19 to 50 years - 1000 mg; people over 51 need 1200 mg of calcium per day.
Tablets that raise calcium in the blood, it is recommended to combine with the adoption of vitamins D, C, as well as magnesium (for example, MAGNE-B6). Also suitable are various multivitamins.
It should also be noted the positive role of protein in the absorption of calcium, in particular, the amino acids of lysine and glycine. Therefore calcium supplements are often made in chelate form (not necessarily with these two amino acids). Chelated additives are associated with amino acids that help calcium to be better absorbed.
It should also be remembered that all drugs can cause side effects and should not be taken without the doctor's recommendation.
How to increase calcium in the blood with drugs? Among the most famous drugs that help increase calcium, you should note the following: Calcium + ascorbic acid, Calcium gluconas, Calcium lactas, Calcium chloridum, and others.