Monday, March 16, 2009

Calcium may boost weight loss

Calcium supplements for obese people with low calcium levels could produce weight loss of up to six kilograms, says a new study from the British Journal of Nutrition. Researchers from the Université Laval report that additional calcium from a supplement affected appetite in obese women with average daily calcium intakes of less than 600 milligrams.

Overweight and obese women (average age 43, average BMI 32 kg/m2) were assigned to a 15-week weight-reducing program supplemented with either a daily calcium plus vitamin D supplement (1200 mg calcium and 10 micrograms vitamin D), or placebo. All the women had daily calcium intakes of less than 800 mg. At the end of the study, the researchers reported that the calcium plus vitamin D supplements had no statistically significant improvement in fat loss, relative to placebo. However, when the researchers limited their analysis to women with very low-calcium intakes, defined as less that 600 milligrams, they found that weight loss was almost 6 kg, compared to 1 kg for women in the control group. The change in the women’s fat mass was related to a change in lipid intake, they added. “We propose that this change in lipid intake could be influenced by a calcium-specific appetite control,” wrote the researchers. Dr Tremblay added that sufficient calcium consumption is therefore important to ensuring the success of any weight loss program. Over 50% of obese women who come to the clinic run by his research team do not consume the recommended daily intake, he added.

Bonnie - this shows that you do not need dairy calcium to encourage weight loss.

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