"Confused about calcium That wouldnt be surprising. The mineral found in popular supplement pills  and in dairy foods leafy greens and many fortified foods  is unquestionably good for your bones. But in recent years doctors have raised concerns that calcium supplements might be overused and bad for hearts. Recently two new studies made headlines. One found a link between the supplements and a buildup of calcium in arteries a possible precursor to heart attacks and strokes. A second widerranging study found no heart risks and was the basis of new guidelines from two medical groups saying that calcium supplements should be considered heart safe. The public has been receiving very confusing and alarming messages about calcium supplements says JoAnn Manson a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and chief of preventive medicine at Brigham and Womens Hospital Boston. About  of U.S. adults take calcium supplements alone or in multivitamins according to a recent report in the medical journal JAMA. So heres what all those people need to know. Concerns about heart risks may be fading. Over the past decade some studies have raised the possibility that calcium from supplements but not from food might raise heart risks. Most recently researchers at Johns Hopkins University tracked nearly  adults and found that those who took calcium supplements at the study outset were  more likely to show artery calcification  years later. Those who got the most calcium from food had a decreased risk. But the study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association httpjaha.ahajournals.orgcontente was not designed in a way that could prove the supplements caused the artery changes. And its findings were quickly refuted by a larger review of  previous studies including some with more rigorous designs. Taken together those findings suggest healthy adults face no increased heart risks from calcium in food or supplements in amounts of up to  mg a day researchers reported in the Annals of Internal Medicine. httpannals.orgaimarticlecalciumintakecardiovasculardiseaseriskupdatedsystematicreviewmetaanalysis The review was funded by the nonprofit National Osteoporosis Foundation with support from Pfizer Consumer Healthcare which makes calcium supplements. If you look at the overall totality of the evidence theres a lack of association between supplement use and heart attack and other cardiovascular events says Manson who cowrote an editorial httpannals.orgaimarticlecalciumsupplementscardiovasculardiseaseriskwhatdoclinicianspatientsneed accompanying the review. The review is really reassuring says Clifford Rosen senior scientist at the Maine Medical Center Research Institute at the University of Maine. He was not involved in the research. Also reassured The osteoporosis foundation and the American Society for Preventive Cardiology which issued new guidelines  httpannals.orgaimarticlelackevidencelinkingcalciumwithoutvitamindsupplementationcardiovasculardiseasesaying supplements appear heart safe. Not everyone is convinced. The larger review did not include all potentially relevant studies says Erin Michos an associate professor of medicine and epidemiology who led the Johns Hopkins study. Im still concerned about harm from supplements and I dont advise them for my patients she says. There are other reasons not to take calcium supplements. The first is that most people dont need them Rosen says. Calcium intake from food has been rising he says with recent surveys finding averages around  mg a day  close to or meeting the  mg. to  mg recommended for adults the higher level is advised for women over  and men over .  Many people get more than they realize he says not just from milk cheese and yogurt but from vegetables grains and increasingly fortified foods and beverages. When there is a gap food is a better choice than supplements the experts agree. Calciumrich foods such as milk  mg a cup plain yogurt  mg per cup and kale  mg a cup come with added nutritional benefits. And supplements come with extra risks increases in kidney stones and for some people constipation and bloating. Some people do need supplements. Older adults with osteoporosis  bone thinning severe enough to raise the risk of debilitating fractures  can benefit from calcium supplements Rosen says though most need just one  mg to  mg dose a day. Larger doses are poorly absorbed and rarely needed he says. Among others who might need a boost Vegans people with lactose intolerance and anyone who for whatever reason does not consume enough calcium says Taylor Wallace an affiliate professor of nutrition at George Mason University in Fairfax Va. and a coauthor of the new cardiovascular statement. Teen girls who are in crucial bonebuilding years often have diets that fall short of their needs  mg a day Wallace says. Your bones need more than calcium alone. Vitamin D  found in fatty fish fortified foods and supplements and produced by the skin in response to sun exposure  also is essential to bone health. Many supplements combine vitamin D and calcium but experts disagree on who should take those supplements and in what doses. Under current U.S. nutrition guidelines teens and adults are advised to get  to  international units of vitamin D each day. Also important for bone health weightbearing exercise such as walking dancing and workouts with weights."