Calcium-based antacid tablets as SHTF calcium supplement?
 

I noticed a few days ago at Sam's Club how dirt-cheap generic calcium-carbonate antacid tablets were, and I got to wondering, other than the side effect of bowel movement discoloration, is there any harm in taking antacid tablets as a long-term calcium supplement after TSHTF?

Re: Calcium-based antacid tablets as SHTF calcium supplement?
 

fwiw, i currently chew 2-4 of them a day as a calcium supplement. i have enough problems taking an aspirin, let alone one of those big calcium horsepills.

Re: Calcium-based antacid tablets as SHTF calcium supplement?
 

Oohshiny, has the discoloration gone away over time? I know it freaked me out first time it happened to me, but because I'm an avid milk drinker, I haven't taken antacid tablets for calcium on an extended basis, just as needed for acid reflux.

Re: Calcium-based antacid tablets as SHTF calcium supplement?
 

Not sure what kind you're taking and how long you've been taking em, but the ones I took while on some meds said not to take more that 8 a day for 2 weeks i think it was.

Not sure if it's bad or good, but for what it's worth. :-)

Re: Calcium-based antacid tablets as SHTF calcium supplement?
 

never really noticed much discoloration. i usually eat one or two in the morning, before coffee and oats, and one or two in the evening before whatever is for dinner...maybe there's been enough other stuff in my belly to tame the discolorations? what really gets some discoloration going on is kidney beans - that startled me the first time i noticed...

typically it's Tums or a generic equivalent, 1,000mg tablets. i can't imagine being able to stomach eight of them in one day, first thing in the morning is ok because i'm so out of it when i first get up i barely notice the chalkiness, and before dinner i'm so ready for something, anything to put in my belly they do alright. some days i don't take any, it's all in what sounds good to my body.

Re: Calcium-based antacid tablets as SHTF calcium supplement?
 

OHmyGOSH. Please stop taking that garbage for heaven's sake.
I thought everyone knew this. Never, ever take that stuff.

Your stomach needs acid in it to absorb calcium
and also that calcium carbonate is not natural calcium.

Junk junk junk.

If you need an antacid just try some natural enzymes
and also eat more fiber rich food.

If you need calcium supplementation take a calcium/magnesium/Vit D blend.

Please do your research on the above info for now or SHTF.

Re: Calcium-based antacid tablets as SHTF calcium supplement?
 

And oh, yes there are extremely dangerous side effects from taking them.......
your body would start to calcify in places you definitely don't want calcification.
Like bone spurs, kidney stones, teeth problems.
Everything gets severely out of whack.

Re: Calcium-based antacid tablets as SHTF calcium supplement?
 

OHL is right. Taking too much of one mineral offsets the absorbtion of others. Ca competes with Mg for example.

Also calcium needs acid in the stomach to be absorbed. Since tums neutralizes acid VERY little Ca is actually absorbed.

Re: Calcium-based antacid tablets as SHTF calcium supplement?
 

Exactly except some of that junk does get absorbed but not as it was
intended to and ends up as evil calcium deposits everywhere.
Even on the brain.

Re: Calcium-based antacid tablets as SHTF calcium supplement?
 

Got links to back up what you're saying, Old Herb Lady? I'm not doubting what you're saying, I'd just like documentation.

But I'm thinking more along the lines of calcium supplements for children or pregnant/lactating women or older people who are most in need of strong bones. And in a SHTF situation, especially if it lasts a while (as many of us are preparing for), calcium-rich foods might not be readily available. So in such an instance, wouldn't calcium-carbonate tablets be better than nothing, provided of course a person drinks ample amounts of water?

Re: Calcium-based antacid tablets as SHTF calcium supplement?
 

Calcium needs to be taken with vitamin D to do any good. And vit D is fat soluble, so you need some fat or oil to get the vitamin absorbed to get the calcium absorbed.

Antacids are in general a bad idea. I know they are a very popular bad idea, but they are still bad. It is only because of heavy advertising that they are so widely used. The stomach makes acid. If you neutralize it, the stomach makes more. So right off the bat an antacid has no useful effect. The main effect of neutralizing acid is CO2 bubbles, which make you belch, which makes you think something important has happened. "Think" is the operative word there. The actual effect is that the bubbles are created in acid, and when you belch the acid is carried into the esophagus, which may be burned. That is slightly worse than whatever you were trying to treat when you took the antacid. If you took it because of "heartburn" there are some worse possibilities. "Heartburn" is a poorly defined condition of vague pain somewhere in the general vicinity of your belly. It can be caused by half a dozen different organs and only a doctor can tell which one and what is actually wrong. Whatever the cause is, it has nothing to do with acid.

The best you can hope for when you take an antacid is that you are only wasting your money.

Re: Calcium-based antacid tablets as SHTF calcium supplement?
 

well i'm feeling dumb and scared now! i'm not doubting you either, ohl, but i am seconding the link request...would like a starting point for research of my own.

direct correlations or creepy coincidences?-->
my g-ma (now 86 years old) has taken the big calcium horsepills for years, and now she starts everyday with a lortab because her arthritis is that bad. i've never been a fan of cow's milk-was raised on raw goat milk, and i just can't handle the taste/texture of pasteurised cow's milk. because of that i started with the Tum's 8, 9 years ago...and have arthritis in my upper spine at 31 years of age

thinking and stewing and mulling...

Re: Calcium-based antacid tablets as SHTF calcium supplement?
 

Point taken, Saul and everyone else, so what would you suggest be stockpiled as a calcium supplement for any of various people who might need it on a somewhat long-term basis in the absence of calcium-rich foods after TSHTF?

Re: Calcium-based antacid tablets as SHTF calcium supplement?
 

Vitamin K2 is also very important. It helps to keep calcium out of areas where it isn't supposed to be(like arterial walls), and puts it where it is supposed to go(like your bones).

Re: Calcium-based antacid tablets as SHTF calcium supplement?
 

Go to the drug store and buy big bottles of pills, preferably calcium, magnesium, and vitamin D. Three pills daily would be a normal dose so 400 pills would cover one person for just over 4 months. They are slightly cheaper in big bottles. I got mine on sale, two bottles for $13.99 at Wahlgreen. The equivalent Caltrate would have been over $33.

Re: Calcium-based antacid tablets as SHTF calcium supplement?
 

I agree - not a good source for calcium. It is calcium bicarbomate in tums. Eat some collards, kale, green peppers, spinach etc. or get quality vitamins.

Re: Calcium-based antacid tablets as SHTF calcium supplement?
 

A health food store will normally have a good selection of calcium pills that are better balanced (contain magnesium, other minerals, some vit D, etc.) Usually the price is good. Those would be better than nothing. I don't know about tums... it might be better to just have nothing. Marble and limestone is basically the same thing... just find a rock and sand some dust off if you want tums...

Re: Calcium-based antacid tablets as SHTF calcium supplement?
 

Yall want links ?? I got links....................




If calcium is not taken with magnesium, or it if it is not highly absorbable, it will cause much more harm than good. The unabsorbed calcium can lodge anywhere in your body and mimic practically any disease. For instances, if it lodges in your bones and joints, it mimics arthritis; if it lodges in you heart, it mimics arterial lesions; it mimics respiratory problems if it lodges in your lungs, etc. Always take twice the amount of calcium as magnesium. Studies show that magnesium increases bone density up to 11% each year. Women should take calcium, magnesium and other vital minerals for osteoporosis. Magnesium has more health benefits attributed to it than any other mineral. It is mainly found in the bones and inside the cells, where it is necessary for the metabolism of and other nutrients. This form of Calcium is known to be easily absorbed and less likely to cause the constipation and gastro-intestinal distress commonly associated with Calcium supplements.

http://www.doctorajadams.com/CalMagCrystals.html






Any Calcium supplement that does not contain Calcium, Magnesium and Vitamin D is simply not of much value in terms of absorption and utilization in the body.
http://www.chsir.com/calcium_magnesium.htm




People who use antacids because they suffer from chronic heartburn or indigestion could have serious underlying medical problems, Rude warns. These symptoms could stem from peptic ulcer disease or gastroesophageal reflux disease, in which corrosive stomach acid bubbles up into the esophagus.
http://www.doctorsofusc.com/services...-tips/antacids

Re: Calcium-based antacid tablets as SHTF calcium supplement?
 

And then some...........


Homemade calcium for SHTF:



Lemon Eggshell:

1.Fill a wide mouth jar with 3 clean, whole, uncracked eggs.
2.Cover the eggs with freshly squeezed lemon juice � it important that the lemons are very fresh or this mixture will not work right.
3.Clove the jar tightly and place it in the refrigerator. You should start to see bubbles forming on the eggshells. That means the eggshells are being dissolved into the lemon juice. The mixture will gradually turn white.
4.Gently agitate the jar a few minutes about 3 times a day.
5.As soon as the bubbling stops it is ready to take. It should not take any longer than 36-48 hours. If you leave the mixture longer it will tend to get thick and the eggs will begin to absorb more of the lemon juice, or the eggs may split and leak into the mixture. Occasionally this mixture doesn't work when the lemons are not fresh enough.
6.Carefully remove the eggs without breaking the membrane, and use them as you would normally, i.e. in your raw egg drink. There will not be any shell left on the egg because it has been totally dissolved into the lemon juice, which is calcium citrate.
7.Place a tight lid on the mixture that remains after the eggs have been removed, and shake it well.
8.Take no more than one teaspoon per day initially because it can be very powerful. Start slowly. The amount may be gradually increased over time.

http://www.healingnaturallybybee.com/articles/supp2.php