Calcium pills 'increase heart attack risk'

by That's Fit Staff (Subscribe to That's Fit Staff's posts)
Jul 30th 2010

It's fairly common for older women to be prescribed calcium tablets to help prevent or treat the brittle bone disease osteoporosis.

But a new study has found that calcium supplements can increase the chance of having a heart attack by 30 per cent.

Scientists at Auckland and Aberdeen universities believe that this is because they can result in higher 'serum calcium levels' in the blood, which can lead to hardened arteries.

As a result, they are concerned that the fact that so many people take calcium supplements mean they could be causing a large number of heart attacks, although in most cases the tablets would only lead to a slightly higher risk.

By comparison, taking calcium from dairy products as part of a balanced diet does not appear to have such a marked effect.

The researchers have now called for a rethink on giving people calcium supplements for bone health.

Judy O'Sullivan, senior cardiac nurse at the British Heart Foundation, said: 'Anyone who has been advised by their doctor to take calcium supplements shouldn't stop because of this reasearch alone.'

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