This is because the high oestrogen levels present before menopause help keep calcium in the bones. Osteoporosis contributes to major orthopedic problems such as hip fractures in 25 to 30 percent of post-menopausal women. Black males are believed to be exempt from calcium loss. The process of osteoporosis begins without symptoms. Later, persistent pain in the area of the lower spine may occur.
Many older women develop dowager's hump, caused by deformity of the vertebrae.
Frequently, osteoporosis advances silently until a spontaneous fracture takes place. Taking calcium supplements can help prevent and to a certain extent, reverse, the process of osteoporosis. To be effectively absorbed, calcium must first be made soluble by the hydrochloric acid present in the stomach. One study has demonstrated that people with reduced stomach acid may absorb only four percent of regular calcium carbonate supplements. 3 Calcium citrate is a soluble form of calcium which does not require the action of stomach acid to make it absorbable.