To choose the best calcium tablets, you will typically have to determine the amount of supplemental calcium you need and choose a supplement that will meet your needs. You may also do well to select a supplement that will only require you to take a couple of doses daily since you may not enjoy having to remember several pills each day. Such factors as the ease with which you will be able to swallow the supplements and the amount of elemental calcium in each might influence your decision as well. Additionally, you might prefer to purchase calcium supplements that bear the seal of approval of an authority in your jurisdiction.
The best calcium tablets will provide your daily requirement for calcium in just a couple of doses per day. The amount of calcium you need will depend, however, on your age and gender as well as any specific health care needs you have. For instance, you may need more calcium if you are pregnant or nursing a baby. You can learn your specific calcium intake requirements by checking a recommended daily allowance chart for information or by asking a medical professional you trust. Ensuring that you only have to take a couple of doses of calcium to meet your daily needs is also important, as fewer doses are easier to remember and you may prefer to avoid swallowing several tablets each day.
When you are trying to choose the best calcium tablets, you may do well to look beyond the amount of calcium that is found in each pill. Instead, it is important to consider the amount of elemental calcium found in each tablet. For example, the entire calcium compound may contain 400 mg of a calcium compound but only contain 200 mg of elemental calcium. The elemental calcium figure is the actual amount of calcium your body can absorb.
It is also important to choose calcium tablets that have been approved by a standard-setting authority in your jurisdiction. For example, you might find labels on some bottles that indicate that they meet your jurisdiction's standards for supplement purity and quality. If you choose supplements that do not have such labeling, you accept the risk that the supplement you take may be of inferior quality.
One thing people often forget to consider when they are trying to choose the best calcium tablets is the ease with which they will be able to swallow the supplement. You may do well to choose calcium tablets that are coated to prevent them from sticking in your throat and ones that are small enough to allow for easy swallowing. You could even consider a chewable type of calcium in a tasty flavor.
