Calcium is plentiful in the human body and it is plentiful in the earth and rocks and soil. In this capacity it is the isotope calcium 40, the one of the six that is more plentiful; it is the type of calcium making up most of the human body and the earth’s supply of calcium. In other words dietary calcium and soil calcium is pretty much the same, composition wise.
Calcium is up front. It is the most noticeable part of a human being;their teeth is calcium and we cannot but fail to notice when they speak to us. It is in the bones and in the blood and in the soft tissues of our bodies. In fact it is everywhere. Yet minute amounts, only one percent, is in the soft tissues while the bones and scalp and hard skeletal parts of the anatomy make up the other ninety-nine percent of biological calcium.
Why do we need it?
It gives structure to our bodies and protects the soft delicate parts of our bodies. As an example, the lungs are protected by the rib cage, and the delicate brain is housed in the hard bony scalp.
Calcium acts as messengers during an action and sends out signals and electrical stimulations and makes it necessary for these stimulants and messaging systems to get across delicate membranes. Also calcium is a regulatory medium between interactions between cells and the messaging system and between these and other enzymes and proteins.
Its supply is in the bones and the teeth. If an insufficient amount is not taken in to satisfy the needs of the body, the teeth and the bones will suffer the loss.
This has been demonstrated by the loss of teeth after giving birth to a child; or at least the necessity of having extra dental work to save teeth. In poor countries where diets are lacking and where mothers give birth to many babies, there is often seen many toothless mothers. In most cases, adequate nutrition and vitamin supplements would have prevented this loss in most cases.
Pregnant women are especially to take note and to have regular doctor visits and to get enough calcium in their diets. They not only have to supply calcium for themselves, but they have to supply calcium for their developing babies. If the supply is not available or is bound up with other minerals the baby’s need comes first. Mothers understand this.
Calcium is also necessary in healthy hearts, in the ability to sleep soundly, for filtering nutrients out of the cell walls of the alimentary canal, for blood clotting, for the proper functioning of nerves and muscles; in fact, calcium is needed for just about all the body systems.
Diseases caused by a lack of calcium are numerous. These range from the already mentioned tooth decay to the softening of bones, otherwise known as osteoporosis. A lack can cause leg or arm cramps, depression, and many other symptoms caused by insufficient calcium. Many of the lesser symptoms are relieved by osteoporosis. The calcium is pulled from the long bones and joints because a more critical area in the body needs the calcium. The more severe statistics arising from a lack of calcium is colon cancer and hypertension.
Normally men need about 1500 mg. daily and women around 1200 mg. Infants need around 400 mg and school age children about 800mg; adolescents need around 1200. Generally these are normal amounts but conditions and circumstances can dictate otherwise.
Dairy products are the best sources of calcium. It is present in other foods and in special cases calcium supplements are recommended, although some say they are useless and are not absorbed. Kale and broccoli, and dried beans are good sources.
A caution here: Calcium in the form of anti-acid medication often is the source of kidney stones. But in such cases, only the physician can make that diagnosis. Probably when this happens it’s the residual effects of supplements that builds up in the body and some other malfunction will not allow for its elimination.
