The big ideas for mineral balance from a nutritional therapy perspective are…
Calcium is a game of co-factors. Almost everyone gets enough calcium, they are missing the co-factors that allow the body to absorb/use it.
- Systemic pH: calcium is needed to keep the blood pH in balance. Calcium is taken out of the bone when the blood pH is too acidic (osteoclastic activity). Calcium is taken out of the blood when it become too alkaline and stored back in the tissues (osteoblastic activity)
- Hormonal Function: our parathyroid hormone regulates calcium activity in the body at all times as well as the thyroid hormone releases calcitonin is released to inhibit breaking down the bone. Our sex hormones estrogen and progesterone need to be in balance to keep bone building and breakdown in balance. Estrogen inhibits osteoclastic activity (bone breaking down) thus promotes bone building. Progesterone promotes osteoblastic activity -bone building. Testosterone is a precursor to estrogen and progesterone.
- Hydration: proper hydration is needed for easy flow, movement/transportation through the bloodstream.
- Other minerals: for proper use of calcium, must be in balance of other minerals as potassium, sodium (intra/extra cellular pump), manganese, boron, copper and zinc.
- Vitamins: Vitamin D, also a type of hormone, is required to absorb calcium. Vitamin D works closely with the guardian of calcium levels in the body- the parathyroid hormone (PTH). Vitamin D and the PTH work together to pull calcium from the bones, decrease calcium loss from the kidneys and pulls calcium from the digestive tract when needed.
- Essential Fatty Acids: fatty acids are necessary to move the minerals into the cells through the cell membrane which is made of fat- the phosolipid membrane layer. Fatty acids help increase the calcium into tissues.
- Digestion: calcium is only absorbed in an acidic environment and needs HCL to update in the small intestine. The stomach pH must be 1.5-3.0 pH to help breakdown ionized calcium from its carrier. Our body can’t make minerals so we must ingest them!
