
Taking Extra Calcium May Require Added ZincBy Judy McBride January
20, 1998Consuming extra calcium from dairy products or supplements could put older
women at risk of low zinc--unless they get extra zinc, too. That's the word
from two studies at the USDA Jean Mayer
Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts, Boston. The center is
funded by USDA's Agricultural Research
Service. Zinc's many functions include helping us maintain a healthy immune system,
skin and appetite. Calcium supplement sales have soared with the growing awareness that high
intakes of this mineral help prevent osteoporosis. Some studies have found that
extra calcium blocks zinc absorption; others haven't. Richard J. Wood and Jia Ju Zheng looked for a zinc-calcium interaction in
elderly women because, as a group, they tend to have low zinc intakes. About
half of U.S. women consume less than two-thirds the Recommended Dietary
Allowance of 12 mg, according to survey data. And the amount of zinc people
absorb from their meals decreases with age. In one of the new studies, 18 relatively healthy women past menopause
increased calcium intake to 1,360 milligrams daily--a little higher than the
1,200 mg now recommended for people over age 50. Their zinc absorption dropped
by an average of about 2 mg, as did zinc balance. This happened regardless of
whether they got the extra calcium from milk or from a calcium phosphate
supplement. The study lasted 36 days. In a second study, zinc absorption dropped by half when a group of 10 men
and women took a calcium supplement with a single test meal. But adding nearly
8 mg of zinc to the calcium supplement offset this effect. While the data are too preliminary to recommend that women taking extra
calcium also increase their zinc intake, they point in that direction. The
richest dietary sources of zinc are oysters, liver and beef, followed by whole
wheat products, nuts, popcorn, cheddar cheese, poultry, lamb and pork. Scientific contact: Richard J. Wood, Jean Mayer USDA
Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging
at Tufts, Boston, Mass., phone (617) 556-3192, fax (617) 556-3344, [email protected]. Story contacts Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging U.S. Department of Agriculture | |