Clinical Briefs

With Comments by Adriane Fugh-Berman, MD

Mineral Water: A Source of Calcium?

April 2001; Volume 3; 31

Source: Guillemant J, et al. Mineral water as a source of dietary calcium: Acute effects on parathyroid function and bone resorption in young men. Am J Clin Nutr 2000;7:999-1002.

Design/Setting/Subjects: A randomized crossover trial in 12 healthy young men.

Intervention: 0.5 L of high-calcium (344 mg calcium/L) mineral water or low-calcium (< 10 mg/L) mineral water.

Outcomes: Serum concentrations of intact parathyroid hormone (iPTH) and type 1 collagen cross-linked C-telopeptide (CTx).

Results: Ingestion of high-calcium mineral water caused a significant increase in ionized calcium and urinary calcium, and decreased serum iPTH by 34% one hour after ingestion. CTx decreased significantly in both serum and urine.

Comment: As the authors of this study note, larger doses of calcium previously have been shown to acutely inhibit PTH secretion. However, 172 mg is a fairly low dose, so it is interesting that it causes the same effects. Mineral water isn’t just a designer version of tap water...it can be a significant source of calcium, magnesium, and other minerals.