Prompting questions over what has long been much preached by health care professionals and nutritionists.
The recent studies have created some confusion regarding the importance of vitamins, minerals and other nutritional supplements, but consumers need to understand a simple fact: Vitamins and other nutrients, including calcium and vitamin D, are necessary to our health and well-being.
Dr. Joseph C. Maroon, a world-renowned neurosurgeon says, "Vitamin D and calcium are essential in maintaining healthy bones and teeth. This fact is not disputable, and a large number of studies over many decades have shown vitamin D and calcium supplementation to be effective in building and maintaining healthy bones. I will continue to recommend these critical supplements to my patients because I continue to believe in their effectiveness."
Many notable studies have found benefits from calcium and vitamin D supplementation. A recent meta-analysis of double blind, randomized controlled trials, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, showed a 26% risk reduction in hip fractures in elderly consuming vitamin D at doses above 700 IU.
While another three year study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, of elderly men and women supplemented with calcium and vitamin D showed they too had reduced bone loss of the hip and spine as well as a reduced incidence of vertebral fractures.
