The A to Z of ‘miracle mineral’ calcium and how it helps your body to function at its optimum best

The A to Z of ‘miracle mineral’ calcium and how it helps your body to function at its optimum best
 
‘Drink your milk!’ Through all our growing years, we keep hearing that litany of lactose, exhorting us to get more calcium to build up our bones and teeth. Now recognised as more than just a ‘bones-and-teeth builder1, calcium is being bailed as a miracle mineral, crucial at every stage of life. Fill up on your calcium facts.
SAY HELLO TO CALCIUM
Today’s woman is a juggler - career, relationships, family, household responsibilities, it’s all part of the day’s work. Calcium ensures that she does a good job. ‘It’s the nutrient that makes you move
Did you know that calcium is the most abundant mineral in the body? The average adult’s weight is made up of about two percent calcium. Most of this - close to 99 percent - is used by the skeleton and teeth, while the rest is stored in body tissues or circulates in the blood. Calcium’s main function may be to help build and maintain the bones and teeth, but it also has a host of peripheral functions that are vital to heart health, as well as nerves, muscles and skin. Calcium is indeed the ‘cellular cement’ that holds cells and tissues together. Recent research adds to calcium’s halo: a diet high in calcium cuts fat cells to size; reduces your blood cholesterol and risk of colon cancer; helps you through PMS; and protects against stroke in middle-aged women. Whew!