News
Increased folic acid intakes during pregnancy may benefit children’s heart health
9 March 2015
According to a new review from China maternal folic acid supplementation seems to reduce the risk of congenital heart defects in the offspring.
02 August 2010
Regularly taking calcium supplements might increase the risk of cardiovascular events, a study from New Zealand suggests.
In the meta-analysis, fifteen randomized controlled trials involving 12,000 people taking calcium supplements were analyzed (1). The researchers found calcium supplementation (500 milligrams or more per day without vitamin D) to be associated with a 20% to 30% increase in heart attack risk, but no increased risk was found for strokes or death from heart disease. Taking the results together with the modest overall efficacy in reducing fracture risk, the scientists suggest that a reassessment of the role of calcium supplements in the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis is warranted. They speculate that calcium supplements may rapidly elevate blood calcium levels, which are believed to lead to hardening of the arteries, which can cause heart attacks.
Experts say that the analysis is interesting but not convincing. You would expect to see an increase in mortality in supplement users along with heart attacks, but the fact that this was not seen makes it hard to understand how calcium could increase the risk for heart attack and not for stroke or death if this association is real, they commented. The findings should encourage more research, but it would be not appropriate at this stage to change public health advice on the use of calcium supplements to maintain bone health.
9 March 2015
According to a new review from China maternal folic acid supplementation seems to reduce the risk of congenital heart defects in the offspring.
1 December 2011
Big parts of the female population may have limited abilities to absorb beta-carotene and convert it into vitamin A due to genetic variations, a new UK study suggests.
24 September 2015
Recent studies of healthy children in the Indian subcontinent show that around 90% are vitamin D deficient (serum 25(OH)D below 50 nmol/l). Clinical indications of the deficiency seen as bone formation abnormalities were visible in around 10% of these children.