Men and the Importance of Calcium

Why is calcium important, especially for men? And what happens when you age? Is calcium intake as important to watch in men as it is in women? There are a lot of questions regarding calcium and a lot of convoluted and somewhat complicated medical answers. Here's a look at the general basics of calcium and why its important to maintain a healthy calcium intake even as you age.

The Basics
Calcium is very essential to your health. It keeps bones, heart, teeth, blood and nerves all healthy. That sound like a lot? That's cause it is. Many think that calcium only effects your bones and teeth, which is untrue it is a vital and extremely important chemical for every aspect of the body to obtain.

One of the common misfortunes of not ingesting enough Calcium is the onset of osteoporosis. Which is summarized rather easily. Do you like hugs or touching people? Or touching things? Or not breaking bones if you trip in the hall? If you like moving, and being able to interact with objects - osteoporosis is something you most definitely don't want. It's the loss of bone mass (due to loss of calcium) that can cause even the lightest touches to shatter or break your bones.

Calcium and Men
As you age, you absorb less and less calcium. Though Vitamin D can increase the rate of calcium absorption by the time most people in the United States are 8 their calcium intake slows, by the time you reach the age of 35 your body and your bones will be about as strong as they can get. Meaning they can only get weaker, as your body gets less and less efficient at calcium absorption.

Its a common misconception that as you age it is "more necessary" for women to watch their calcium intake. Menopause is accompanied with a drop in estrogen which can increase risk of osteoporosis. There isn't anything that makes this "more" necessary than it is for men to keep an appropriate calcium intake.

Calcium strengthens your bones, your heart, your nerves. As you age you absorb it less readily as a man or a woman and it is important to see you continue to absorb as much as you can. Calcium supplements are readily available to most and can become an essential part of healthy living as you age.

Sources

Mayo Clinic Online - Todd B. Nippoldt, M.D.
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/calcium-supplements/an00420

The Calcium Information Resource
http://www.calciuminfo.com/calciumquestions/default.aspx

National Osteoporosis Foundation
http://www.nof.org/prevention/calcium2.htm