Once we reach our 50s, it’s important to pay closer attention to our intake of calcium and vitamin D.
These two nutrients play a major role in keeping our bones strong and reducing the risk of falls and fractures as we age.
Women go through a period of rapid bone loss around menopause. As their estrogen levels drop, women lose about 3% of their bone mass every year during the menopause transition and for about five years after their final period.
After that, bone loss continues but at a slower pace—about 1% each year. Men also start losing bone around age 50, at a steady rate of about 1% per year.
This weakening of the bones means they are more likely to break if we fall. Vitamin D helps us absorb calcium, but it also supports muscle strength and balance. Without enough of it, people are more likely to fall. This is especially important because hip fractures, which are very serious, become much more common in people in their 70s and 80s.
However, more calcium and vitamin D is not always better. Too much calcium can lead to kidney stones. And taking high doses of vitamin D can have mixed results. Some studies showed that people who were low in vitamin D had fewer falls after taking supplements.
But when the dose was increased too much, the benefits stopped—and in some cases, the risk of falls and fractures actually went up. People with very high levels of vitamin D in their blood were more likely to have problems.
Vitamin D may also affect other parts of the body, like the immune system and how the body handles infections or diabetes, but we still need more research to know how to use that information in everyday care.
According to experts at the Food and Nutrition Board of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, here are the recommended daily amounts: women over 51 and men over 71 need 1,200 milligrams of calcium a day.
Men aged 51 to 70 need 1,000 milligrams. For vitamin D, the recommendation is 15 micrograms (600 IU) daily for people aged 51–70, and 20 micrograms (800 IU) for those over 70.
So how can older adults get enough calcium and vitamin D each day? Most people in the U.S. get their calcium from dairy foods like milk, cheese, and yogurt.
If you’re not having at least two servings of dairy each day, you probably aren’t getting enough calcium. In that case, taking a 500-milligram calcium supplement may help. But if you do eat enough dairy, there’s no need to take extra.
Vitamin D is trickier because it also comes from sunlight. If you spend a lot of time outdoors in sunny places like Florida, especially in the winter, and your skin tans, your body is probably making enough vitamin D on its own.
But in places like Massachusetts, from October to March, the sun isn’t strong enough to help your skin make vitamin D. During those months, and at other times if you’re not outside much, older adults should consider taking 800 to 1,000 IU of vitamin D daily.
As we age, we often eat less. That means it becomes even more important to make sure every bite counts. Many older adults manage to keep up their calcium intake, but many others don’t. Paying attention to these nutrients can help protect your bones and help you stay active and independent as you age.
If you care about nutrition, please read studies about why vitamin K is so important for older people, and this snack food may harm your heart rhythm.
For more health information, please see recent studies about vitamin that may protect you from type 2 diabetes, and results showing this common chemical in food may harm your blood pressure.
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