Do you know why? If not, you can learn it
Calcium is an essential nutrient throughout our entire life cycle. In certain periods of our life we need more, in others less. Women, in general, need more calcium than men. Women need more of this mineral while they are pregnant and during as well as after the menopause.
First of all, I would like to remind you of the fact that calcium is present in many different foods. For example milk is calcium rich and therefore also cheese has good amounts of calcium. The same can be said of yogurt. There are certain vegetables that contribute to our calcium intake like beans and spinach as well as dark green leafy vegetables. A good source represents also tofu, or soy beans in general,
In early life, as babies and infants we receive sufficient calcium because we drink milk and later eat cereals.But we also need a lot of calcium as our bones and teeth are growing and solidifying. As children between the age of 4-8 years, the daily amount necessary is about 800 mg. This increases while we are growing and adding centimetres to our height. It then reaches 1300 mg between age 9-18. Once we have reached full growth, more or less at age 19 until we are fifty, the need decreases to 1000 mg daily. After that age, from 51 onwards, the need increases to 1200 mg. Almost 99 % of the body’s calcium is stored in bones.
Now the reasons, why we need this mineral.
If we do not consume the necessary amount of calcium, our bones will be in bad health.Bones need calcium to grow, to remain strong and to support the body’s weight during our whole life.
It is most important to make deposits in the body’s calcium bank before we are 30 years old.
Once we reach 40 years, the body gradually starts withdrawing calcium from the bone bank. If we did not deposit enough during our youth, withdrawal of calcium results in broken bones, loss of height and painful osteoporosis.
Calcium is also needed for the blood. If we cut ourselves and are bleeding and if our blood is poor in calcium, the bleeding will not stop. That might result in a great danger for our life.
This mineral is also needed for normal muscle contractions. It is involved in the heart beat and in blood pressure.
Calcium is involved in many other processes that take place in our bodies.
We should try to keep up the amount we need in all stages of our life. Our body will thank us we did.
Elisabetta Reist
http://www.kissanxietygoodbye.com
ereist@reistlingue.ch
