by Edward Group, DC
Calcium orotate is the most highly absorbed calcium supplement. Extensive research by the late German doctor Hans A. Nieper, MD, found that orotate molecules are the most efficient carriers of calcium, magnesium, lithium, and other ions in the body. Orotates can cross the cell membrane, delivering the mineral ion to the innermost layers of the cell to reach the mitochondria and nucleus. Other calcium supplements, such as calcium carbonate, citrate, gluconate, lactate, malate, and phosphate, cannot penetrate the membranes as orotates can, or they are broken up in the digestive tract.1, 2
Calcium orotate includes a calcium molecule bonded to two molecules of orotic acid. The orotate protects the calcium from stomach acid, allowing the molecule to remain intact until it reaches the intestines. In the gut, the calcium enters the bloodstream to be effectively delivered where it’s most needed, such as bone and other tissues. The body absorbs 90% to 95% of this form of calcium.3
Calcium Orotate versus Calcium Carbonate
Calcium carbonate is the most common calcium supplement sold today, but it is essentially the same as chalk. Your stomach is unable to digest calcium carbonate unless it is taken with food because there is not enough stomach acid to break it down. As a result, some healthcare providers have even found lodged, undigested calcium carbonate tablets in the intestines of some patients.4 Absorption of calcium carbonate averages 31% but can be lower if not taken with food.5
Calcium Orotate versus Calcium Citrate
Calcium citrate is the second most common form of calcium citrate. Absorption is better than calcium carbonate but still not as high as calcium orotate. The advantage of calcium citrate over calcium carbonate is that you can take it without food because stomach acid can break the calcium apart from the citrate molecule. Nevertheless, calcium citrate only has an absorption rate of around 39%.6.
How Much Calcium Do You Need?
If you take calcium supplements, you have to hit the sweet spot of taking enough, but not too much, for optimal health benefits and safety. The Food and Nutrition Board (FNB) of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies developed recommended dietary allowances (RDA) for calcium, as well as upper limits listed in the table below. The maximum dose that you should take at a given time is 500 mg of elemental calcium, mainly because the body doesn’t efficiently absorb higher doses. However, you can take more than 500 mg per day if you divide up the dose and take it at different times.
Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDA) for Calcium6
Age | Male | Female | Pregnant | Lactating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
0-6 months* | 200-1,000 mg | 200-1,000 mg | N/A | N/A |
7-12 months* | 260-1,500 mg | 260-1,500 mg | N/A | N/A |
1-3 years | 700-2,500 mg | 700-2,500 mg | N/A | N/A |
4-8 years | 1,000-2,500 mg | 1,000-2,500 mg | N/A | N/A |
9-13 years | 1,300-3,000 mg | 1,300-3,000 mg | N/A | N/A |
14-18 years | 1,300-3,000 mg | 1,300-3,000 mg | 1,300-3,000 mg | 1,300-3,000 mg |
19-50 years | 1,000-2,500 mg | 1,000-2,500 mg | 1,000-2,500 mg | 1,000-2,500 mg |
51-70 years | 1,000-2,000 mg | 1,200-2,000 mg | N/A | N/A |
71+ years | 1,200-2,000 mg | 1,200-2,000 mg | N/A | N/A |
References
Lanphier L, Sharpe E. Orotates and mineral transporters: fact or fiction. Oasis Advanced Wellness Health. [cited 2018 Aug 13]. Available from https://oawhealth.com/2018/08/...
Nieper A. Recalcification of bone metastases by calcium diorotate. Agressologie. 1970;11(6):495-500. PMID: 5502790.
Health Sciences Institute. Types of calcium supplements. [cited 2018 Aug 28]. Available from: https://hsionline.com/2004/04/...
Kmiec M. Should You Be Afraid Of Your Calcium Supplements? Or The ‘Research’ Telling You To Be?. Online Holistic Health. 2014. [cited 2018 Aug. 28]. Available from https://www.onlineholisticheal...
Harvey JA, Kenny P, Poindexter J, Pak CY. Superior calcium absorption from calcium citrate than calcium carbonate using external forearm counting. J Am Coll Nutr. 1990 Dec;9(6):583-7. doi: 10.1080/07315724.1990.10720413. PMID: 2273192.
National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements. Calcium: Fact Sheet for Health Professionals. [Internet] U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. [cited 2018 Aug 29]. Available from: https://ods.od.nih.gov/factshe...
