Calcium supplement tablets can “make you live longer”

Implementing calcium supplement tablets can help women live longer – according to researchers.

A diet that includes up to 1000 mg a day of calcium can lower the risk of dying by 22 per cent compared with women who do not take calcium supplements.

Women are encouraged to take calcium supplements in order to stave off bone weakening diseases like osteoporosis and osteopenia.

There have been studies in the past decade that suggest calcium could contribute to a heightened risk of cardio vascular disease and developing certain cancers.

However, researchers in Canada refute these claims stating that their studies show an overwhelming need for extra calcium amongst women.

Speaking to the Daily Mail, lead author David Goltzman, of McGill University in Montreal, said ‘Our study found daily use of calcium supplements was associated with a lower risk of death among women.

‘The benefit was seen for women who took doses of up to 1,000 mg per day, regardless of whether the supplement contained vitamin D.’ according to a recent study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society’s Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM).

Scientists studied data from the large-scale Canadian Multicentre Osteoporosis Study which monitored the health of 9,033 Canadians between 1995 and 2007. During that period, 1,160 participants died.

The findings show a 22 per cent cut in risk of death for women using calcium supplements compared with non-users, but no statistical benefit for men.

The study found no conclusive evidence that taking vitamin D had an impact on death rates.

There appeared to be no benefit from taking calcium at doses bigger than 1,000mg a day.

Dr Golzman said ‘Higher amounts of calcium were potentially linked to longer lifespans in women, regardless of the source of the calcium.