To all-
Many of us have been discussing the Calcium issue in varying ways. I do
have recent references. Historically, my nutrition texts have been the last
ones to get the news out. The American Dietetic Association had been fairly
general and neutral when it came to controversial nutrition issues.
However, it recently has become mainstream general knowledge among
dieticians and all major college up-to-date nutrition texts that protein
excess can be a serious problem, most Americans get double the amount they
need, and excess protein may cause Calcium excretion. Here are some quotes:

>Nutrition Concepts and Controversies by Sizer and Whitney-"Calcium
excretion rises as protein intake increases, especially protein from
animal-derived, though not plant-derived foods. Whether excess protein
depletes bone minerals depends largely upon the ratio of dietary calcium to
protein. An ideal ratio has not been established, but a woman that just
needs, but does not exceed the RDA for both nutrients has a calcium to
protein ratio of 16 mg Calcium to 1 g of Protein."-J.Hu and coauthors,
Dietary Intakes and Urinary Excretion of Calcium and acids: A
cross-sectional study of woman in China, AMerican Journal of Clinical
Nutrition 58 (1993):398-406.

>These findings have been repeated over and over recently showing that even
when calcium intakes are very high (1400 mg) excess protein intake caused a
negative calcium balance. It is also true that diets low in protein help to
conserve bone density. Strict vegetarians faired better than those that
centered their meals on eggs and dairy. The lacto-ovo vegetarian had the
same amount of rapid bone loss as meat-eaters: Here are the reputable
references for those that want it (I know you will Don)...

J.C. Howe, Postprandial response of calcium metabolism in post menopausal
women to meals varying in protein level/source, Metabolism:Clinical and
Experimental 39 (1990):1246-1252.

R.P.Heaney, Protein Intake and Calcium Economy, Journal of American
Dietetic Ass.93 (1993): 1259-1260.

R. Tesar and coauthors, Axial peripheral bone density and nutrient intake
of post menopausal vegetarian and omnivoruos woman, American Journal of
Clinical Nutr 56 (1992):699-704.

J Bonjour and coauthors. Hip fractur, femoral bone mineral density, and
protein supply in elderlu patients, in H. Munro and G. Schleirf,eds. Nutr
of the Elderly (NY Raven Press 1992), pp 151-159.

I have a lot more references related to this topic!
BTW-To calculate you personal protein needs, take your kg of bodyweight
(which is pounds divided by 2.2) and multiply by .8 and this will give you
the grams of protein you need. ( If you are a bodybuilder or endurance
athlete then you may need 1 or 1.2 grams per kg of bodyweight).

-Cherie Moore