Too much of a good thing.Rising consumer fears about osteoporosis have led food marketers to introduce hundreds of "calcium-enriched" products. Shoppers find calcium-fortified orange juice, chocolate chews, margarine--even ice cream--waiting on the shelves. Several brands of antacids Antacids Definition Antacids are medicines that neutralize stomach acid. Purpose Antacids are used to relieve acid indigestion, upset stomach, sour stomach, and heartburn. promote their calcium content as well. While many fall short of the 1,000 to 1,300 milligrams of calcium needed in the daily diet, nutritionists are becoming concerned about people consuming too much. An upper limit of 2,500 milligrams per day has now been established. Excess calcium can lead to headaches and irritability irritability /ir·ri·ta·bil·i·ty/ (ir?i-tah-bil´i-te) the quality of being irritable. myotatic irritability the ability of a muscle to contract in response to stretching. , soft tissue calcification calcification /cal·ci·fi·ca·tion/ (kal?si-fi-ka´shun) the deposit of calcium salts in a tissue. dystrophic calcification , and even kidney failure kidney failure or renal failure Partial or complete loss of kidney function. Acute failure causes reduced urine output and blood chemical imbalance, including uremia. Most patients recover within six weeks. . It can also inhibit your body's ability to absorb iron and zinc. Wall Street Journal |
|
||||||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion