Chewing Blackboard Chalk May Increase Your Risk of Heart Attack

In the news recently is a number of articles referencing a new theory that calcium supplementation can actually increase your risk of heart attacks. The study that poses this theory was published yesterday in the BMJ Online First, and while the theory may in fact be true, it is full of holes.Researcher Ian Reid, MD, of New Zealand’s University of Aukland reviewed 11 studies with nearly 12,000 patients and concluded that there may be a slight increased risk of heart attack with those taking more than 500mg calcium. They mentioned that the calcium was without vitamin D. What they didn’t mention was what KIND of calcium it was, which is the REAL story.This is a classic example of a magician’s sleight of hand. Would you have been more impressed if the research title read, “Chewing Blackboard Chalk May Increase Your Risk of Heart Attack..”? Ludicrous, right? Except that blackboard chalk is made from the same material (Calcium Carbonate) that Tums and many other common calcium supplements are made with. Calcium Carbonate takes twelve chemical reactions before the body can utilize it. To put it in perspective, the calcium supplement I use to help people heal is Standard Process Calcium Lactate , which only requires one chemical reaction before it’s utilized.An article on the subject in WebMD went on to state that Reid recommends, “patients to get their calcium from the foods they eat and not from supplements.” In theory, that’s a great argument, but those suffering from calcium deficiency already know this and have been unsuccessful in absorbing calcium from their foods. Standard Process products come from organic farms, and are specifically packaged as whole-food supplements because we agree with Dr. Reid: nutrition from whole organically grown foods will result in the best nutrition.What about calcium from milk, you say? I could present an entire seminar about the myths of getting calcium (or any real nutrition) from today’s dairy. Specifically about calcium, however: the long and short of it is that the pasteurization process that kills the bugs also crystallizes the calcium, rendering it useless for human consumption. (The “Got Milk?” advertising never mentions this though, does it?) It has to do with ionic vs covalent bonds, and explaining the chemistry involved is a great cure for insomnia.Suffice it to say, there’s WAY more than meets the eye when talking about calcium and the human body. To recap: watch out for sleight-of-hand studies making a splash in the headlines. Use your noggin: the closer to organically grown food you get, the more nutrition you’ll absorb. And lastly: whenever you have health related questions, use your resources. I’m happy to answer your questions. I Got Your Back! –Dr. Bryan Born, DC www.Painless-Chiropractor.com