Reid, IanAmes, RuthMason, BarbaraReid, HelenBacon, CatherineBolland, MarkGamble, GregoryGrey, AndrewHorne, Anne2012-02-282008Arch Intern Med 168(20):2276-2282 10 Nov 20080003-9926http://hdl.handle.net/2292/12186Background There is no consistent evidence, to our knowledge, that calcium supplementation affects bone mineral density (BMD) in men, despite male osteoporosis being a common clinical problem. Methods To determine the effects of calcium supplementation (600 mg/d, 1200 mg/d, or placebo) on BMD in men, we conducted a double-blind, randomized controlled trial for a 2-year period at an academic clinical research center. A total of 323 healthy men at least 40 years old (mean age, 57 years) were recruited by newspaper advertisement. Complete follow-up was achieved in 96% of subjects. Results The BMD increased at all sites in the group receiving calcium, 1200 mg/d, by 1% to 1.5% more than those receiving placebo. The results for the group receiving calcium, 600 mg/d, were not different from the placebo group at any BMD site. There was no interaction between the BMD treatment effect and either age or dietary calcium intake. There were dosage-related, sustained decreases in serum parathyroid hormone (P < .001), total alkaline phosphatase activity (P = .01), and procollagen type 1 N-terminal propeptide (P < .001) amounting to 25%, 8%, and 20%, respectively, in the group receiving calcium, 1200 mg/d, at 2 years. Tooth loss, constipation, and cramps were unaffected by calcium supplementation, falls tended to be less frequent in the group receiving calcium, 1200 mg/d, but vascular events tended to be more common in the groups receiving calcium vs the group receiving placebo. Conclusion Calcium, 1200 mg/d, has effects on BMD in men comparable with those found in postmenopausal women but a dosage of 600 mg/d is ineffective for treating BMD.Items in ResearchSpace are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated. Previously published items are made available in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher. Details obtained from http://www.sherpa.ac.uk/romeo/issn/0003-9926/https://researchspace.auckland.ac.nz/docs/uoa-docs/rights.htmJournal ArticleCopyright: American Medical Association19001206http://purl.org/eprint/accessRights/RestrictedAccess