Calcium equilibrium in muscle.

CLICK HERE FOR ARTICLE

This article discusses a study conducted on frogs that compare the effect of calcium on muscle. Within the experiment they focused on 6 muscles of the frogs the tibialis anticus longus, peroneus, ileofibularis, sartorius, and the semitendinosus.The experiment itself was pretty complicated, they had each muscle dissected and soaked in 100 ml of solution. The solution consisted of  CaCls, NaC1, and KC1.The muscles were soaked for 5 hours and then tested to see the influx of calcium within a given muscle.

The reason for this experiment was to determine the permeability (ability to let things in or out of the cell)
of the muscle cell membrane to calcium.Also the experiments goal to calculate the energy requirements
to maintain the calcium in a steady state. This is vital to muscle metabolism because active working muscle needs calcium. This test will hopefully give us a ball park figure of are calcium influx within a given muscle.

Within this experiment they focused a huge part of the study on the metabolism satorius muscle of frogs. The flux of calcium within the cell during steady state was 0.8 mM/(liter hr) This information help to conclude the idea that their is a calcium pump within the muscle. The calcium pump is responsible for pushing calcium out of cell. The calcium that is being pump out of the cell must be coming out with quite some force, because going against a an chemical gradient.The flux is low but the maximum energy required per hour to pump calcium out of the cell against this high gradient is key in muscle metabolism.

Overall, I think this article does a great job on highlighting the need for calcium in muscle metabolism. I think its interesting to learn that their is in fact a mechanism within a given muscle that is responsible for the maintenance of calcium levels. Also i think it would be interesting to fin out how this mechanism to maintain calcium levels works in human muscle. 

How a muscle contraction is signalled - Animation

This Video is amazing it really grasps the main reason as to why calcium is so essential in the contration of any muscle. I hope you enjoy the video and can see a visual image of what is actually happening during a muscle contration on a mirco level :)

I choose this picture because it shows the daily recommendation of calcium for all different phase throughout life. Check it out and see if you close to your daily recommendation.

Nutritional aspects of the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis

*CLICK HERE FOR ARTICLE*

Wow. This article is a great outlet that can be used to discover what osteoporosis is, how to prevent it, and if your genetically at risk for getting osteoporosis. Within this article it also defines osteoporosis as a skeletal disease that is associated with low bone mass and microarchitechural breakdown of bone tissue. Resulting in increase chance of bone fracture and overall decrease in bone strength. I appreciated this article because it showed the real issue of osteoporosis in our population. One statistic I found within the article that supports the concept concerning the number of individuals suffering from osteoporosis is stated below: “ After age 50, 1 in 2 women and 1 in 4 men will have a osteoporosis-related fracture”. The actual fracture that they are talking about in this article is caused from too much stress on aging weak bones. 

Genetics play a huge role in determining if an individual maybe at higher risk of developing osteoporosis later in life. The article stated that genetics play up to 80% of determining an individuals peak bone mass. However, we can predict the outcome of the other 20% by choosing a healthier lifestyle. A healthier lifestyle would include no smoking, a good diet, exercise daily, and limit alcohol consumption. Also everyone needs to make sure they are meeting the recommended calcium intakes either through food or through calcium supplements. Calcium supplements where also discussed in this article and it said, “ one positive aspect of calcium supplements is that it reduces bone remodeling.

The top 5 important reason why we need to meet the recommended calcium intakes I found in this article are stated below:

1.Calcium is required for normal growth and development of the skeleton.

2.Adequate intakes of calcium is needed to meet optimal peak bone mass.

3.Calcium intakes are closely related to affecting the rate of bone loss while an individual is aging.

4.Calcium is important in the bodies fluid due to its effects on binding proteins, metabolic functions, and operating as a signal transmitter

5.Lastly, calcium is essential in the contraction and re-contraction of muscles

I though this was important to highlight as it ultimately explains to my blog readers why once again calcium is essential to our bodies.

This Article also did a great job explaining other key components that are essential in the prevention of osteoporosis and the promotion of healthy bones. These key components are Vitamin D, protein, Magnesium, and phosphorus. Vitamin D is vital to bone development and maintenance of bone, because vitamin D can reduce risk of osteoporosis and bone fracture in older people. Protein was discussed in this article to play a major role in repairing muscle and bone. It is also essential component in bone tissue. More than 60% of the bodies’ magnesium is stored in the bones. Magnesium is important to the bones because it decreases the hydroapatite crystal size. The decrease in the crystal size will result in the prevention of brittle bones.

Overall, I really like this article it was informative and proved actual studies based on our population. If you take the time to read this article make sure to check out all the graphs, because I found them very helpful.

 

The Importance of Meeting Calcium Needs with Foods

*CLICK HERE FOR ARTICLE*

This article is great because it recognizes that there is a current calcium crisis in America. The article also provide the reader with the actual dietary recommendations of calcium intake for all ages as stated below:

•        1-3 year of age = 500 mg of calcium daily
•        4-8 year of age = 800 mg of calcium daily
•        9-18 year of age = 1,300 mg of calcium daily
•        19-50 year of age = 1,000 mg of calcium daily
•        50+ year of age = 1,200mg of calcium daily

Along with the crisis the article shares its concern with child developed due to the lack of meeting recommended calcium intakes.  Here is a quote from the article that concludes those thoughts, "”As stated by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development(NICHD), children’s low calcium intake is … a growing problem and a serious threat to their later  healthy growth and development” .This quote was pulled directly from the article highlighting the nation concern of children’s low calcium intake.

One benefit to reading this article was that it covered the current factors that in fact influencing the low dietary calcium consumption. It dedicated a section of these factors to the recent research, which shows that people are substituting soft drinks for milk. This is represented in a graph in the article that you should definitely look at.  

Coinciding with the factors influencing dietary calcium consumption, another major factor was that eating outside the home. “In 1995, the calcium density of away from home food was 343 mg per 1,000 kilocalories, whereas home foods had a calcium density of 425 mg per 1,000 kilocalories.” This quote from the article highlights the difference in calcium intake when eating outside the home, and how when you do eat at home you will probably be consuming more calcium.

One section of this article I found interesting was that one major problem of limiting calcium intakes in children was a direct reflection of the parents. I am when you think about it the parents buy, choice, and cook the food that their children will at least while at home. If parents can be more proactive in their food purchases and their preparations of that food their children will defiantly benefit from it.  Also the article stated that there is an increase in soda consumptions when families eat together at the dinner table.

Calcium is not bad fat! I learned this through this article that most people think that by cutting down their consumption of dairy products will result in weight loss; however, this article discuses the complete opposite. One fun fact I learned from this article was that low-fat milk contains the same amount of calcium as whole milk. It also supports the consumptions of calcium-fortified foods, like soymilk. Also this article shares health benefits of consuming calcium rich foods. Some benefits they communicated were reducing risks of osteoporosis, hypertension, colon cancer, stroke, and also can help maintain weight control. Check this article out is really helpful!