Calcium is a mineral. It's vital for developing and maintaining healthy bones and teeth. It's also important for muscle and nerve activity in your body, including for your heartbeat.
Everyone needs calcium in their diet. The amount of calcium you need changes at different stages in your life. In your teenage years, more calcium is needed because your bones are growing quickly. At an older age, your body finds it harder to absorb calcium, which is one of the reasons older adults also need more calcium.
Calcium is stored in your bones
Your skeleton contains 99% of your body’s calcium. Calcium is deposited in your bones until your mid-20s.
- Your bone mass increases by about 7-fold from birth to puberty and a further 3-fold during adolescence.
- It then remains stable until about age 50 in men or until women reach menopause.
- You maintain your blood levels of calcium by taking it from your bones.
- In other words, your bones serve as a ‘bank’ and later in life you draw calcium out to meet your needs.
Calcium is particularly important in children and young people because their bones are growing rapidly, and in older men and women as their stored calcium can become depleted.
At menopause, women will experience a decline in calcium absorption and/or an increase in calcium excretion – putting them at increased risk of osteoporosis and bone fracture. Weight-bearing exercise and vitamin D (which helps your body to absorb calcium from your diet) also help to maintain bone strength.
Calcium deficiency
Calcium deficiency in children will stunt growth and result in poor quality teeth and bones and an increased risk of fractures. Adults will experience aches and pains, lose height and develop brittle bones (osteoporosis).
Recommended dietary intake (RDI) for calcium for NZ and Australia |
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Children |
9–13 years |
1000–1300 mg/day |
Teenagers |
14–18 years |
1300 mg/day |
Men |
19–70 years |
1000 mg/day |
Elderly men |
70+ years |
1300 mg/day |
Women* |
19–50 years |
1000 mg/day |
Older women |
50–70+ years |
1300 mg/day |
*Note the requirements for pregnancy and breastfeeding are not increased above the requirements for women who are not pregnant or breastfeeding. |