Calcium Cancer Link

Professor Ian Reid and colleagues at the University of Auckland have found a link between calcium supplements and a higher rate of heart attacks. The research team pooled the results of 11 clinical trials in which 12, people over 4 were randomly assigned to take either a placebo or at least 5mg of calcium a day for an average of 3.5 years. After considering age, smoking, high blood pressure, and other risk factors for heart disease, the researchers found that people who took calcium supplements were 3 per cent more likely to have a heart attack than people who took placebos. Calcium supplements are commonly taken by older people for skeletal health. The results have been published in the British Medical Journal.