Most Americans do not get enough calcium in their diets; the average daily intake is 500 milligrams shy of the RDI (Recommended Daily Intake) of 1,000 to 1,500 milligrams.
Gastric bypass patients are even more unlikely to intake adequate dietary calcium and without supplementation they may become calcium deficient which ultimately results in osteoporosis. Weight loss surgery patients are limited by the volume of calcium rich foods they may consume. In addition, the malabsorption issue resulting from gastric bypass presents another problem. Since the bowel does not readily absorb calcium and the stomach is drastically shortened there is limited opportunity for the calcium to be absorbed in the body.
Calcium is the most abundant mineral in the body ? we have two or three pounds of it, most of which is located in the bones and teeth. In addition to building bones and teeth, calcium is an electrolyte required for transmitting nerve signals, water balance, acid/alkaline balance and maintaining osmotic pressure. It helps the blood to clot and is necessary for the heart muscle function. It's long been known that calcium will aid in the prevention of osteoporosis, but new studies are identifying calcium for it's anticancer actions within the colon.
Most dietary calcium comes from dairy products but can also be found in sardines, canned salmon, green leafy vegetables and tofu. The National Academy of Sciences has raised the calcium guideline to 1,000 milligrams a day for people under 51, and to 1,200-1,500 milligrams a day for people over 51.
Gastric bypass patients can do three things to better assimilate calcium in the body:
First, take a chewable calcium supplement twice daily.
Second, exercise consistently.
Third, enjoy sunshine every day.
Chewable supplements taken twice daily will more rapidly dissolve and assimilate into the body than hard pills. They should be 500 milligrams each; the body cannot absorb more than 500 milligrams at a time. The best supplements are calcium citrate, calcium carbonate and calcium lactate.
Next, studies show that people who exercise regularly better assimilate calcium into the body than sedentary individuals. Even though US Astronauts take calcium supplements in orbit, they return to Earth calcium deficient; NASA believes lack of physical activity prevents their bodies from assimilating the calcium.
Finally, get some sunshine. Twenty minutes a day of direct or indirect sunlight will give the body plenty of natural vitamin D, the "sunshine vitamin", which is necessary for calcium assimilation.
Doing these three things will make you feel great today and will contribute to healthier aging. Osteoporosis is an epidemic in this country and is directly attributed to calcium deficiency. We all know that when an elderly person falls and breaks a hip death is imminent. Osteoporosis is nearly always the reason why hipbones break when older people fall. In the case of osteoporosis there is nothing the body can do to defend itself from the loss of calcium associated with aging. Supplementation is necessary throughout adulthood to prevent chronic calcium deficiency.
Kaye Bailey is a weight loss surgery success story having maintained her health and goal weight for 5+ years. An award winning journalist, she is the author and webmaster of http://www.livingafterwls.com and http://www.livingafterwls.com
Fresh & insightful content is added daily, check in often.
To subscribe to the LivingAfterWLS monthly newsletter "You Have Arrived" click on http://www.livingafterwls.com and enter your details in the subscription box.
tidy up service Northbrook ..People usually quit weightloss and exercise programs for one of... Read More
Ephedra has been used in Chinese medicine for thousands of... Read More
What do I mean by that?Well, carrots are good for... Read More
Steady gains made in improvement in life expectancy may be... Read More
My name is Greg Ryan. I am a best selling... Read More
Here's a letter from my email:Dear Carol,I took your teleclass... Read More
One of the worst things you can hear in life... Read More
Dieting will continue to fail most dieters, unless personalized weight... Read More
Americans have their French fries, the British have their chips,... Read More
Telling yourself you have to "struggle with this weight issue... Read More
I was overweight at my age. It's not a pretty... Read More
You have finally decided to tackle weight management and lose... Read More
(But What You Need to Know if You Want to... Read More
I don't know about you, but I absolutely love bread... Read More
New Medical Research shows high-intensity exercise can increase the body's... Read More
If all we have to do is exercise to live... Read More
1. CUT THE SIMPLE CARBS.It's unfortunate that the majority of... Read More
There is no doubt about it; Americans are eating in... Read More
Although every dieter knows that keeping food records is a... Read More
Include in your diet things that contain more water like... Read More
What is "too young" to begin a weight loss program... Read More
From the moment of birth your first emotional experiences establish... Read More
Why was the FDA trying to hide the facts about... Read More
Well, to begin with, there isn't really any one Mediterranean... Read More
This little known secret has been used by bodybuilders for... Read More
reliable home cleaners Buffalo Grove .."I eat like a bird, why do I gain weight?"... Read More
I thought I could avoid this when we moved to... Read More
An increasing trend over the last few years has been... Read More
Once in a while a good title comes along and... Read More
If you have been dieting, there is a good chance... Read More
"The kind of thoughts that you plant in your mind,... Read More
Weight loss is never easy. Although this is stating the... Read More
Weight Loss Their Greatest Opponent --------------------------------- Before high school and... Read More
Almost everyone has attempted to follow diets and weight loss... Read More
Cellulite is probably one of the most embarrassing of all... Read More
You don't realize it, but in the next few minutes... Read More
You've seen them a hundred times: "Before" and "After" pictures.... Read More
We have all heard of those new diets, Atkins, low... Read More
In the early nineties I had the opportunity to work... Read More
The most common and popular diet fad over the past... Read More
Are you ready to lose some weight? Perhaps you're surfing... Read More
While the gastric bypass may seem like the perfect solution... Read More
Getting Started on The Clean DietIf you want to lose... Read More
Taming the See Food Eat Food ResponseWhat happens when you're... Read More
It seems like everywhere you turn, there is someone trying... Read More
It's easy to lose sight of our goals, "Do I... Read More
Have you ever dreaded the idea of pulling weeds, planting... Read More
Dieters have long searched for secret paths to easy weight... Read More
Americans have their French fries, the British have their chips,... Read More
Have you ever just felt like you were doing everything... Read More
Weight Loss |