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Article: The latest on calcium supplement safety: a recent study links calcium supplements to a greater heart attack risk. But don't throw out your pills yet.(SUPPLEMENTS)
- Article from:
- Women's Health Advisor
- Article date:
- May 1, 2008
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You take calcium supplements to protect your bones and prevent fractures, but a recent study suggests they might be damaging to your heart.
The study, published online Jan. 15 in the British Medical Journal (BMJ), found that healthy postmenopausal women (average age 74) who took elemental calcium citrate supplements daily were significantly more likely to have a heart attack than women who didn't take calcium. The authors say the supplements raise blood calcium levels, potentially leading to calcium deposits in the arteries that can block blood flow.
"The findings suggest that the very elderly may have an increase in heart attack when taking this ...