Lee Swanson Research Update

Calcium Supplements Help Ward off Bone Fractures

July 2008

Daily supplements of calcium may reduce the risk of fractures in a healthy population by 72%, according to results of a randomized placebo-controlled trial.

Emphasizing the importance of the supplements, researchers from University Hospital Zurich and Dartmouth Medical School in New Hampshire led by Dr. Heike Bischoff-Ferrari, report that the benefits were no longer observed when supplementation was stopped.

The use of calcium, usually in combination with vitamin D, has long been recommended to reduce the risk of bone fracture for older people, and the use of these supplements is widely accepted by the general public.

The new study adds to this body of evidence, showing that among the 930 healthy participants in the study, fewer fractures were recorded in the group receiving a daily calcium carbonate supplement, than those receiving placebo.

Bischoff-Ferrari and co-workers recruited the healthy individuals with an average age of 61, and randomly assigned them to receive the calcium supplement (1,200 mg of elemental calcium) or placebo, for four years. After the supplementation period had ended the participants were followed for a further 10.8 years.

Measures of the primary outcomes of all fractures and minimal trauma fractures showed that people in the calcium group experienced 46 fractures, 15 of which were from minimal trauma, while 54 fractures were documented in the placebo group, 29 of which were from minimal trauma. A minimal trauma fracture is defined as being caused by falling from a sitting, standing or walking position and height.

Bischoff-Ferrari and co-workers calculated that calcium supplements reduced the risk of fracture by 72%, but no difference between the groups was observed during the follow-up period when no supplements were consumed.

“Calcium supplementation reduced the risk of all fractures and of minimal trauma fractures among healthy individuals,” concluded the researchers. “The benefit appeared to dissipate after treatment was stopped.”

The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 87(6):1945-1951, 2008

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