The symbol for Calcium is Ca and its atomic number is 20. Calcium is essential for living organisms, particularly in cell physiology. It is also a major material used in mineralization of bones and shells.
Calcium has many uses:
- in extraction of other metals, such as uranium
- as an alloying agent used in the production of alloys, eg aluminium alloys, magnesium alloys
- in the making of cements and mortars in construction
Calcium is also a mineral essential for life. We've been told that three glasses of milk per daywill help prevent osteoporosis, the weakening of bones. Yet osteoporosis seems to be on the rise. However, studies have shown that “The countries with the highest rates of osteoporosis are the ones where people drink the most milk and have the most calcium in their diets. The connection between calcium consumption and bone health is actually very weak, and the connection between dairy consumption and bone health is almost nonexistent.” ( http://health.learninginfo.org/osteoporosis.htm )
Humans are the only mammals in the world who continue to drink milk after they are weaned off and not only do they continue to drink milk, but they drink another mammal's milk! Something just doesn't seem right here...
I also chose Calcium! And I love that you brought up the fact about the highest milk consuming countries also being the countries with the most cases of osteoporosis.
ReplyDeleteMy understanding is that because milk (and meat) creates and acidic environment in our bodies, we have to neutralize the acid using calcium since it is alkaline, so milk (and meat) essentially leach calcium from our bones making them brittle and porous.
The dairy industry is a powerful lobby in this country. They created the food pyramid that tells Americans that they need to drink 3 glasses of milk a day. It is scary to think that profit is the basis for most of our cultural norms.
Plants are a much better source of Calcium because the Calcium in plants is more bio available and does not come with the added acidity, saturated fat, lactose (which is an allergen to the vast majority of people in the world), cholesterol and cruelty. And pus. There's a lot of pus in milk.