[Are calcium and vitamin D supplements for everyone?: Pro]

Calcium and vitamin D are essential for the health of our bones and various scientific societies recommend an intake of 1,000 mg of calcium and 800 IU of vitamin D daily. Most people with osteoporosis do not eat food with this amount of calcium and also have insufficient levels of vitamin D, so supplements are recommended to provide osteoporotic patients with these amounts. Calcium supplements and vitamin D improve the effectiveness of anabolic and anti-catabolic agents and may have a small effect in reducing the number of fractures. Calcium supplements alone have not shown efficacy preventing fractures in patients with osteoporosis and may increase cardiovascular risk in healthy elderly women and is therefore not recommended for widespread use. Vitamin D supplements are recommended in persons with 25-OH vitamin D levels below 30 ng/ml, in particular the elderly and osteoporotic patients, due to its ability to halt the remodeling resulting from secondary hyperparathyroidism and reduce the loss of bone mass. Vitamin D supplements could help reduce falls and fractures in the institutionalized elderly. In addition, supplements of vitamin D may have other beneficial effects due to extra-osseous regulatory functions on the immune response and cell differentiation and proliferation that is associated with vitamin D. Trials begun in recent years clearly indicate a beneficial effect of vitamin D supplements on mortality, cardiovascular risk,development of tumors and prevention of infections.