Do calcium pills increase dementia risk? New research debunks link

Sydney (dpa) – As women age, brittle bones or osteoporosis can be a worry, as can dementia. There have long been whispers that calcium supplements taken to prevent the former can add to the risk of the latter. Not so, according to scientists at three Australian universities, who said their research into the matter found "no evidence" linking cognitive decline with calcium pills. "Calcium supplementation for five years did not increase the risk of all-cause dementia events over 14.5 years in community-dwelling older women," the researchers said, in a paper published by The Lancet, a medical journal. "Findings do not support concerns that calcium supplementation increases long-term risk of dementia," according to the team which was made up of scientists and doctors at Edith Cowan University (ECU), Curtin University and the University of Western Australia. The study should offer reassurance to patients, particularly older women worried about dementia risk, that calcium supplements are safe, said Negar Ghasemifard of ECU, who described prior studies warning of a calcium-dementia connection as "purely observational in nature." The team's work was funded by National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia and entailed a "five-year placebo-controlled randomized trial of calcium supplements" given to almost 1,500 women with a median age of 75. Osteoporosis affects around one in five women over the age of 70, the researchers said. The following information is not intended for publication dpa spr coh

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