Dietary Calcium Can Reduce Body Fat

 
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Dairy:

Don’t be afraid of the right kind of dairy!

 
 
 

The conclusions I personally came to from reading studies on the issue of eating dairy is that, eating dietary calcium*:

  • Does not increase weight;

  • Has actually been found to decrease the visceral fat (fat around the organs in your mid section); and

  • Not getting enough calcium from your food is in fact bad for weight maintenance, bad for your bones & your blood pressure, especially when you are on a weight loss journey.


How it all happened:

I was reading the “Diabetes Solution”(4th edition) by Dr. Richard Bernstein - an excellent source btw for anyone diagnosed with Pre-diabetes, Type 2 or Type 1 diabetes on understanding the condition and achieving normal blood sugars - and on page 204 he says:


“There is evidence that dietary calcium and to a lesser degree calcium supplements (1,000-3,000mg daily) may facilitate weight loss by inhibiting the accompanying slowdown of metabolism that may occur when you lose weight.”


He does go on to point out that Calcium supplements come with an increased likelihood of things like atherosclerosis (arterial calcification) developing, but i was more interested on whether or not this statement regarding getting calcium from food was true so I went looking for some evidence. I usually go to Pub Med for proof of statements or facts; it is where any kind of medical study on any topic is published for the world to see. And although I can’t know if these resources are the “evidence” that Dr. Bernstein refers to, I came to the same conclusion as Dr Bernstein from the studies I looked into and of which I am sharing summaries to three of them including links if you wish to see the whole thing.


I accumulated about 5 pages worth of studies which were too much for my post, so here are the outcomes of the 3, I was most intrigued by.

1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15090625

In April 2004, 32 obese adults were fed 3 different diets & monitored over 24 weeks, after the 6 months the results for each group were quite different. These were the results:

Those on a Standard Diet

  • Achieved 6.4 kg weight loss; and

  • 19% fat loss from the tummy area.

High-Calcium Diet (Supplement)

  • Achieved 8.6kg weight loss; and

  • 50.1% fat loss from the tummy area.

Those on High-Dairy Diet

  • Achieved 10.9kg weight loss; and

  • 66.2% fat loss from the mid section.


So, increasing calcium intake augmented weight and % of fat loss, but the diet high in dairy products instead of supplements definitely showed substantially greater effect.


2. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2902577/

In March 2010 they took 119 women (20 of normal weight from the start and 99 that achieved normal weight following a diet) and monitored them for 1 year.

The results indicated that after 1 year, average calcium intake was not associated with changes of weight, total fat, or subcutaneous fat (fat just under the skin, cushioning, energy storage), BUT it was significantly, inversely associated with change in visceral fat, the more calcium-rich the diet the less visceral fat the person had, especially when the weight was maintained over the 1-yr period.


Visceral fat: is the fat around the organs in our mid section, it has been found to be hormonally active, it affects other functions in the body and can lead to medical pathologies such as metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular issues, insulin resistance etc, it’s the type of fat we don’t want to have and must get rid of!

3. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30629707

In January 2019 a study on rats examined the effects of dietary Calcium (Ca) on body composition and cholesterol.

What they found was that rats on the high Ca diets

  • Had lower total and LDL cholesterol (the “bad” one);

  • Digested less trans fats (these are often found in our foods and are toxic to our bodies) and saturated fats; and

  • Had the highest excretion of cholesterol and bile in the faeces (and that’s probably the reason their cholesterol markers were improved).

Other big calcium sources:

I just want to point out here that Dr Bernstein is referring to dietary calcium sources such as cheese, yoghurt and cream, which are indeed good foods and I recommend them too, but it is worth pointing out some of the other great sources of calcium: sardines (with the bones), sesame seeds, almonds, spinach, kale, broccoli, fermented tofu, tahini (ground sesame seeds!). Keep them in mind people!

And just in case you were looking for ‘milk’ on the list, it is not there on purpose, because milk and especially cow’s milk doesn’t really belong in the human species’ diet beyond infancy and because for so many of us it comes with many gastrointestinal issues, but that’s a discussion for another time…Bottom line people: For a healthy balanced diet eat foods high in Calcium from the list above and when you eat dairy go for full fat products such as cheese, yoghurt and cream (unless you have any intolerance) and where possible look for pasture raised & organic. Don’t worry they may contribute to accumulating fat around the organs or increased cholesterol, because they won’t, quite the opposite in fact as we have seen.


Enjoy!

* remember world, when we talk about consuming dairy products we are talking full fat and where possible organic, pasture raised dairy. No low-fat, zero-fat and that kind of stuff because they are furthest away from the natural product our body is programmed for and knows how to deal with.








 
Emily Magee