Calcium & Vitamin D Deficiency & World Osteoporosis Day

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Did you know that October 20 is World Osteoporosis Day?

Did you know that poor vitamin & mineral absorption from conditions like celiac disease can lead to osteoporosis and lots of other preventable health conditions?

Did you know that calcium and vitamin D are important for good bone health, and to prevent osteoporosis?

In fact, calcium also contributes to normal heart rhythms, muscle function, and blood pressure. Without adequate amounts of vitamin D, however, the intestine absorbs only 10-15% of dietary calcium.

Vitamin D deficiency itself can lead to bone problems, muscle weakness, poor immune function and contributes to a higher risk of diseases like colon cancer, breast cancer, diabetes, metabolic syndrome, pulmonary disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and even chronic pain, depression and daytime sleepiness.

radio microphone(To learn more, listen to the free podcast of my radio interview with Dr. Christine Doherty)

So how do you get enough calcium and vitamin D3 to prevent these serious health problems?

Aside from measured does of exposure to the sun without sunscreen (the best way to get active vitamin D) and proper nutrition (leafy greens, wild salmon, tuna, okra, milk, free-range eggs and certain mushrooms) supplements are often necessary to reach optimum levels of vitamin D and calcium.

What are the ideal daily amounts of calcium and vitamin D? The Institute of Medicine (IOM) has issued these recommendations:

IOM calcium levels
(Click on the table above to see the image clearly)

If you suspect that you are calcium or vitamin D deficient, raise your concerns with your doctor and ask to be tested (I am not a physician, and information in this article should not take the place of your doctor's medical opinion.)

adora bags

Supplements are a good idea for many of us, and one that I personally love (I wrote about it for Prevention.com) is Adora® Calcium Supplements.*

Gluten-free, corn syrup-free and trans-fat-free, Adora® supplements are actually delicious 30 calorie chocolates (dark or milk) which contain up to 50% of the recommended daily intake of calcium and vitamin D3 and magnesium for optimal absorption (500 mg of calcium, 250 IU of vitamin D3, 40 mg magnesium).

Adora wants to give one of my lucky readers a chance to try their Chocolate calcium supplements, too. OUR CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED. Congrats to Vunda, our winner!

Thanks for spreading the health!

Sources for this article:
http://www.worldosteoporosisday.org/
http://share.iofbonehealth.org/WOD/2013/fact-sheet/WOD13-fact_sheet.pdf
http://www.iom.edu/Reports/2010/Dietary-Reference-Intakes-for-calcium-and-vitamin-D.aspx
http://www.iom.edu/Reports/2010/Dietary-Reference-Intakes-for-Calcium-and-Vitamin-D/DRI-Values.aspx
http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/VitaminD-HealthProfessional/
http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/guide/calcium-vitamin-d-foods
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-mark-hyman/vitamin-d-why-you-are-pro_b_585311.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-michael-j-breus/vitamin-d-sleep_b_2567445.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kelly-dorfman/vitamin-deficiency_b_1633446.html

*Adora supplied me with samples of their calcium supplements; I have not been compensated in any other way, and my opinions, as always, are my own.

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  1. HI there, these are awesome can’t wait to try them, liked their page, and checked out the website. I am deficient in Vitamin D and have been curious why the osteo piece hasn’t come up! Thanks for sharing!

    Reply
  2. Totally trying the dark chocolate. I have been looking for a good calcium supplement that won’t make me ill. Thanks for posting this, Jules!!

    Reply
  3. i like adora on facebook (my fb name is realia mazing) i think having a sweet treat for my calcium supplement is an amazing idea!

    Reply
  4. Hi Jules, I would love to try these supplements. Living in Oregon we usually don’t get as many opportunities to receive our D3 from the sun(though we are in the midst of sunny days right now!) Swallowing large calcium supplements is not easy for me so finding a gluten-free alternative that is chewable sounds great! Thanks for sharing the info.

    Reply
  5. I heard about this on Facebook, I liked your page there, entered the contest and shared the link on my page along with the fact that I like to keep my chewable vitamin supplements next to my recliner where I see them while watching evening TV. I find I am much better about actually taking them that way. I love the idea of putting all this good stuff in dark chocolate. I’ll have to get some for my mom as well.

    Reply
  6. I liked Adora FB page. I shared the info with my mother. I know she doesn’t get enough Calcium (in her eyes the little splash of milk in her coffee or cereal is enough). Hopefully I can get her to take a supplement.

    Reply
  7. I checked out their website. This sounds a lot yummier than a calcium pill! I think I would go for the dark chocolate, since it has less sugar.

    Reply
  8. I shared your link on facebook, I liked their page and I checked out their website! Thanks for all the information too.

    Reply

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