Understanding Calcium in the Body
Our bodies need Calcium, so we must ingest it, but have you ever wondered how Calcium gets absorbed by the body?
It is a fairly simple process. We eat food that is rich in calcium, and that food goes through the process of digestion. The blood absorbs the Calcium from the food when it passes the small intestine. Now, here is the crucial bit. In order for the blood to absorb the Calcium, it needs two things:
- Physical Activity
- Vitamin D (The sunshine Vitamin)
Without physical activity, Vitamin D and a touch of protein your body won’t absorb any of the calcium and it will be pushed out in the urine!
Now, what happens when the body absorbs calcium?
3 different hormones are involved in the maintenance of calcium metabolism:
- Calcirol (found in Vitamin D)
- Parathyroid hormone (produced by the thyroid gland)
- Calcitonin (produced by the thyroid gland)
Calcirol (found in Vitamin D) stimulates the osteoblasts to deposit calcium in the bones. This is an essential function, as the more calcium there is in the bones, the stronger they will be!
Spending 10 minutes exposing your skin to the morning sun will ensure that the body has enough Vitamin D.
PTH or the parathyroid hormone maintains the calcium levels in the blood. When the calcium level in the blood is low, the hormone is produced to stimulate the Osteoclasts to remove calcium from the bones and release it into the blood.
Calcitonin is the antagonist to PTH. It stimulates the Osteoblasts to take the calcium from the blood and lay it in the bone. This happens when there is a sufficient amount of Calcium in the blood.
Our bodies do a lot of the work without our knowledge, so it is our job to make sure we eat food rich in Calcium, stay physically active, and spend some time in the sunlight!
Checkout our blog ‘Bones: The Building Blocks of the Body’ for more insights on how to keep your bones strong and healthy!
https://blog.boneandjointindia.com/bones-the-bodys-building-blocks/
