LET'S TALK CALCIUM
NOVEMBER 4, 2018
When most people hear the word calcium, bone health is the first thing that comes to mind, but calcium goes far beyond just building bones, teeth, and supporting the Musculoskeletal System. The heart, muscles, blood pressure, formation of cholesterol, pH, nerves, blood sugar, mineral absorption and many more bodily functions require calcium to work properly.
In my professional opinion, calcium's most critical role is to balance the body's pH. If the body chemistry is too acidic OR too alkaline, the body will leach calcium from our reserves to neutralize pH (hence why I am against alkaline water, but that's a post for a different day). This depletion of our reserves can only last for so long, because after the age of 30 we quit producing calcium and become fully dependent on dietary supplementation. Here's the not-so-good news, if our diet, or the ability to absorb calcium, isn't fulfilling the calcium needed AND our reserves become depleted, the pH is unable to be neutralized and this imbalance leaves the door open for disease to step in. Heart malfunctions, osteo-you-name-it, digestive disorders, magnesium/potassium/phosphorus deficiencies, joint and muscle fatigue along with major degenerative decline - I could keep going, but I'm sure you catch my drift - these are just a few symptoms we see when calcium levels are depleted.
CALCIUM IS IMPORTANT, but the source of calcium is even more so. And guess what? Dairy is not the answer, at least not in the form most try to obtain it from. If choosing dairy, RAW is the only absorbable source to supply your calcium needs. Fortifying a liquid substance in the grocery store called “milk” by adding calcium, vitamin D, etc. isn't going to help by any stretch. America has the highest percent of osteoporosis, yet our country consumes more pasteurized and fortified milk than multiple countries put together - that's because our milk isn't cutting it.
Food sources and complex food based supplements are preferred over isolated calcium supplements, as the body needs magnesium, vitamin D and vitamin K in order for the body to even absorb calcium.
However, a short term option to quickly get pH in line, while working on dietary and lifestyle modifications, is to take specific calcium supplementation for your pH needs. This is my specialty, I run tests to see how the chemistry of the body is doing. If remineralization is needed, I educate on specific nutritional needs and use supplementation to quickly get pH numbers in line. This improves absorption of the nutrients the body is receiving and almost immediately provides energy to a depleted body system within just a few short weeks, sometimes days. The numbers my tests provide don't lie, and nine times out of ten they point straight to past/present diet and lifestyle. The chemistry of the body must remain neutral and in balance or disfunction will arise.
Mineral deficiencies occur for a reason, so it is vital to get to the root of the problem and not just settle on a long term pill/supplement sentence. Dig until you find an answer, and then dig some more.
