Calcium

Indication: Colorectal cancer

Source: Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev, January 2005;14(1):126-32.

Research: Researchers investigated the association between calcium intake and colorectal cancer in a prospective cohort of 45,354 women without a history of colorectal cancer, who successfully completed a 62-item National Cancer Institute/Block food-frequency questionnaire. Women were followed for an average of 8.5 years, during which time 482 subjects developed colorectal cancer. Study investigators created categories for calcium from supplements as follows: 0 mg/day (n = 25,441), 0 to 400 mg/day (n = 9452), 401 to 800 mg/day (n = 4176) and >800 mg/day (n =6285).

Results: High consumption of calcium from diet and calcium from supplements resulted in even further risk reduction compared with low consumption of both sources of calcium. These data indicate that a difference of 800 mg of calcium per day was associated with an approximately 25% reduction in risk of colorectal cancer, and this reduction in risk occurred regardless of the source of the calcium (i.e., diet or supplements).