Originally published October 5 2005
Israeli researchers say calcium supplements prevent polyps
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Michael Asher Weingarten of Rabin Medical Centre, leading a team of Israeli researchers, discovered that calcium supplements protect again polyps that can develop into colorectal cancer, but so far, no research has definitively concluded that calcium can ward off cancer.
Although calcium supplements might prevent development of polyps that sometimes lead to colon cancer, there is not enough evidence that the mineral can prevent colorectal cancer itself, according to a new study.
The study, a review of two earlier well-designed randomized controlled trials, found a moderate protective effect on development of colorectal adenomatous polyps, the small, generally benign types that about 30 percent of middle-aged and older Americans have.
Because it is difficult to conduct studies on the effect of preventive doses of calcium on colorectal cancer itself -- due to the relatively small number of cases and the length of time they could be watched -- the reviewers looked instead at prevention of polyps, which occur frequently in the population, as a potential predictor of later cancer.
Previous experiments in animals and surveys of people who had high calcium diets have indicated a possible protective effect.
In looking at the two best studies done so far, Weingarten and colleagues found results that "suggest a clinically relevant protective effect of dietary calcium supplementation on the development of colorectal adenomatous polyps."
"Although it is likely to be safe, this ...
The review appears in the current issue of The Cochrane Library, a publication of The Cochrane Collaboration, an international organization that evaluates medical research.
Systematic reviews draw evidence-based conclusions about medical practice after considering both the content and quality of existing medical trials on a topic.
If further studies confirm calcium as effective, the review says it could be given to people who had polyps before and who are thus are at higher risk of getting colorectal cancer.
Doubts about the importance of dietary calcium have surfaced in a number of studies, according to the review, which points out that early findings of polyp- and cancer-inhibiting effects of calcium have not been confirmed by recent studies.
The review focused on two double blind, placebo controlled trials involving 1,346 people, including participants with previous adenomas.
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