A Highly Effective, Cheaper Alternative to Calcium Supplements is Already in Your Kitchen

Photo credit: Chris Salt

The importance of calcium intake is grossly underrated. When you think of calcium, you probably only think of it as a necessity for strong teeth and bones, but this mineral is required for so much more. For example, did you know that the formation of your cells depend on calcium? Your heart rhythm, muscles, nerves, and your mental health also need a supply of this mineral in order to function properly. 
 
The health problems that can manifest from low calcium levels are mind-boggling. Sleep, is one example -- Insufficient calcium levels can prevent you from getting good quality, deep sleep. 

Could you be deficient in calcium?  
Hypocalcemia or "calcium deficiency" is more common than you'd think and it can have devastating effects on your health.


Signs of hypocalcemia
Hypocalcemia can be asymptomatic for some people while others may experience life-threatening symptoms. 

It's important to know all the symptoms, but here are some of the more common signs of low calcium levels.

•  Muscle spasms/twitches, including in your face
•  Muscle cramps
•  Muscle weakness
•  Numbness
•  Shaking and trembling
•  Loss of body control 
•  Tingling sensations in your feet, hands, or lips
•  Seizures 
•  Slow or uneven heartbeat
•  Lightheaded-ness 
•  Cardiac arrest, in severe cases

•  Anxiety
•  Depression 
•  Confusion
•  Anger
•  Hallucinations, including auditory hallucinations

Those last 5 are interesting, if not scary. If you have the signs of calcium deficiency, then first thing you should do is start implementing this important mineral into your diet. 

Let's talk about how you can get those calcium levels up without having to shell (no pun intended) out a fortune on expensive supplements. 

Photo credit: Fetching Photos

For an alternative to expensive, questionable calcium supplements, try getting your calcium from eggshells. 

I know, it sounds horrifying, when you imagine crunching and swallowing something as sharp and glass-like as broken eggshells. 

The truth is, eggshell calcium is made by grinding eggshells into a fine powder, so it's much smoother than chewing on glass shards.

Is eggshell calcium better than a supplement?

Aside from the fact that it's cheaper to use eggshells (and cheaper is sometimes better in my opinion), there are a couple of reasons that eggshells may be a better alternative to calcium supplements.

•  Eggshell calcium (calcium carbonate) is said to be the perfect source of bio-available calcium, according to the research conducted in the1940's by Hungarian physician I. Krompecher. (Krompecher and his colleagues are the folks who developed the basics of therapeutic eggshell use.) The calcium in eggshells is similar to that found in our bones and teeth, so it's no surprise that eggshell calcium is at least a good source of calcium, if not "perfect," as Krompecher found.

*Bio-avaiable means that it's easily absorbed by the body. Some believe that our bodies don't always absorb minerals like calcium when we take them in the form of supplements. There's probably a reason why nutrition obtained from food sources (over supplements) is always the preferred and recommended route.

• Eggshells can contain up to 27 important minerals (like magnesium, phosphorous, silicon) and 20 essential amino acids (such as lysine, cysteine, isoleucine) all of which are critical for healthy bones and teeth. 

•  Store bought supplements often contain questionable ingredients like preservatives, additives, and who-knows-what-else. If you use organic, free-range eggs, you don't have to worry about the questionable ingredients that are found in supplements. Just be sure to opt for organic, free-range eggs.

Diseases That Benefit From Eggshell Calcium 
 

photo credit: Dawn Endico

1. Orthopedic diseases like osteoporosis.
Eggshell powder has shown significantly positive effects in the treatment and prevention of osteoporosis, according to researchers from the National Institute of Rheumatic Diseases. Furthermore, clinical studies found that eggshell powder decreases pain and osteoresorption (problems caused by decreased bone formation) while increasing mobility in women with senile osteoporosis and post-menopausal women with osteoporosis.

The study authors also noted that healing time was faster when eggshell calcium was used in the treatment of orthopedic problems such as osteoporosis.



2. Arthritis 
Eggshell calcium stimulates the growth of cartilage and decreases pain from arthritis, according to a study conducted on animals.

3. Bone Mineral Density
Another study, published in the British Journal of Nutrition, found that a year of taking eggshell calcium (added to a vitamin/mineral supplement) increased the bone mineral density in healthy, late post-menopausal women. 

4. Plaque and weak tooth enamel
Using an eggshell based toothpaste can strengthen tooth enamel and some folks are even using it to help remineralize their teeth and prevent cavities.

There's some information swarming the Internet claiming that  a dentistry school in the Philippines found that when used overtime, eggshell toothpaste leads to stronger enamel, cleaner teeth, and less plaque formation. I have to be upfront and say that I've had no luck finding any reputable source that mentions this "study."

5. Nutritional Rickets
Some parents use ground eggshells to prevent nutritional rickets and promote healthy bone tissue formation.  Dr. Krompecher, from the Biological Research Institute, began using crushed or ground eggshells to treat rickets in children back in the 40's. According to the study published in the International Journal of Clinical Pharmacy, Dr. Krompecher would administer up to 6 grams of eggshells daily to children with rickets.

Note: Low levels of phosphorous and Vitamin D are also known to cause rickets, so don't rely solely on calcium. Eggshells are commonly ground into a fine powder and added to foods for this purpose.

How To Make Your Own Eggshell Calcium
If you're as thrilled as I was to learn a simple way to get of calcium without spending a lot of money, then you'll want to make your own right away. There are a few slightly different ways to go about making eggshell calcium, but each method is pretty simple. If you want to make your own eggshell calcium, pick whichever method suits you and follow the instructions below:

1. Rinse the eggshells, but feel free to leave the nutritious "membrane" (the white papery film attached to the inside of the egg.)

2. Bake or Hard boil the eggs to kill any pathogens. Some people speculate that boiling the eggshells would diminish their mineral content. Reports have stated that this isn't the case except with the potassium content, which will leach out of the shells. Some people opt to bake them, which is what I do. Spread the shells out on a baking sheet and bake at 325 F for 15 minutes.

3. Crush 'em! (Use a food processor, coffee grinder or blender) Personally, this is my favorite part and you'll probably find it odd, but I actually enjoyed crushing them by hand (mortar and pestle style.) There's something a little soothing about the repetitive crunching of the shells. Either that or I had no other option but to crush them by hand, so I've convinced myself it was enjoyable! 

It's much more time consuming to crush the eggshells by hand. I have managed to crush a batch down to powder form, but you'll probably want to use a coffee bean grinder or a food processor if you have one. Just don't use the plastic bag + hammer method. I tried it the first time and it was a total fail. 

As for using a blender, it won't grind them down into a fine powder, but you can mortar and pestle the rest of the way or just toss your eggshell in the blender with smoothie ingredients.

4. Store your eggshell calcium in a jar with a tight lid. Glass baby food jars work well, but the only jar I had on hand was a plastic instant coffee container. Some people store the jar of calcium in the fridge.

How to Make Calcium Citrate:
Calcium citrate is a more easily absorbed form of calcium for some people. You can make calcium citrate easily by adding either lemon juice or apple cider vinegar to your eggshells. I only tried making calcium citrate once, but I find the powdered method easier.  

Watch the step-by-step video tutorial by Living The Hedge Witch Life if you're interested in making your own calcium citrate.

How Much Eggshell Calcium Should You Take
 
1 teaspoon of crushed eggshell contains around 800 - 1,000 milligrams of calcium. Or around 400 milligrams per gram. The old study "Eggshell Calcium for the Prevention and Treatment of Osteoporosis" published in the International Journal of Clinical Pharmacy says 1 gram of powder contains 370 milligrams of calcium.

Obviously, the daily dosage of calcium will depend on your personal daily needs, so you'll have to adjust your dose accordingly. The most common "dosage" I've heard of people using is between half a teaspoon to  1 teaspoon daily. I'm not one for exact measurements, so I typically just dip my teaspoon in and eyeball it.

How Should You Take Eggshell Calcium?
If you ask me, the quicker and easier, the better. Well, when it comes to taking supplements. 

Most days, I just scoop a small amount of powder out (usually around half a teaspoon) and swallow with water or juice. However, you can add this virtually tasteless powder to many foods and drinks if you really care to.

Most people seem to prefer taking their supplements in smoothies. You can put your eggshell calcium in applesauce, oatmeal, juice, ice cream, thick soups, etc. You can even sprinkle it on your salad or other dishes. Just keep in mind that the powder will give your smoothies/foods texture. If small bits of powdered shell is bothersome, you might have to get creative.

How to Make Natural Toothpaste Using Eggshells 
You can make your own toothpaste using a scoop of your crushed eggshell powder and very few other ingredients. The best part about DIY toothpaste is that the recipes can be tweaked to include ingredients that fit your specific needs and taste.

Here is a quick video that tells you how to make a super simple eggshell toothpaste using coconut oil and eggshells

  

Baking soda and coconut oil are the most commonly used base ingredients. As long as you have those, you'll be able to make your own toothpaste right away.

Warning: Only use calcium carbonate for your toothpaste. Do not use calcium citrate -- it's too acidic for use on the enamel.

Marissa from the Becoming Kindred blog has a simple recipe for those of you who are interested in making your own eggshell-based toothpaste.
 


Note: Always remember that your body needs all its  important nutrients, vitamins, and minerals in order to properly utilize them, and calcium is no exception. It works with other vital nutrients and minerals. In other words, calcium can't do much for you if you're deficient somewhere else. 

Vitamin D3, Vitamin K, and Magnesium are some of the critical ones needed for calcium to be useful.

Using Eggshell Calcium for Osteoporosis and Depo Provera Patients

How and Why I'm Using Cheap Eggshell Calcium as a Depo-Provera Patient (who wants to improve and maintain healthy teeth and bones)

About every 3 months when it comes time for me to receive Depo-Provera injections, I become filled with concerns over my dental health. I've been on this medication for 9 years -- since I was 15 years old. Obviously, that possibly puts me at risk for bone loss and osteoporosis, which in turn affects dental health, so I've actively worked towards taking preventative measures over the years.

If you folks have been reading Ribbons and Pearls for long, you're likely aware of my struggles through severe, debilitating IBS, accompanied by endometriosis for most of my teenage life, and in the last 2-3 years, an onset of insane dental issues.

The two stomach related issues caused me even more trouble in the area of my health because 1. my weight got down to 70-something pounds. 2. I was unable to eat a single bite of anything without having severe gastrointestinal and stomach pain that would leave me in bed for days at a time. 

Being sick like that for so many years -- especially since this was occurring during all of my teenage years, the ones that are said to be the most important when it comes to building healthy bones -- left me depleted of vital nutrients, electrolytes, minerals, and deficient in virtually every single vitamin.

I couldn't eat, so I couldn't obtain the nutrients, vitamins, minerals, etc. necessary for good health, or to help fight what felt like a raging alien invading my entire abdominal area (and uterus).

"Just take a multi-vitamin every day,"

"Or drink those Ensure things! Even Pedialyte," people would suggest, on the odd occasion that I did see human life other than my amazing love and two parents. 

Others would say "Gosh, I so wish I could get sick and be skinny without having to do anything!"

Yea, let me tell you, I too wish you could do this and while you're at it, take the problem away from me please! 

You go ahead and take this life of virtual non-existent. Most of my teenage years spent going nowhere but from a bed to the bathroom. Yes, please. Do take this "easy" way to skinny-ness. By all means. Because it's totally worth it. To be so ill that you think you're going to die before you ever get to experience spending time outside the home with your spouse. Never getting to see friends. Often having to call off every event imaginable because heck, who wants to be stuck in a bathroom at someone's fun party, or during a vacation to the beach writhing in pain and having bouts of painful...

Okay!

Let me just stop myself right there.

 I forgot how bitter I could get when I thought back on the times when so many have "envied" my "luck."

I didn't intend to go there at all, so let's just move on. You get the picture -- I was pretty much deathly sick. 

  A few years after living with those problems, I, inevitably, began experiencing dental health issues, which started with a wisdom tooth that broke, then another tooth, which my dentist recommended implants for, but sadly, I ended up getting a root canal instead as the implants would've been completely unaffordable.

I spent an entire year researching, experimenting, and documenting everything I did to improve my dental health right here on Ribbons & Pearls. 

I tried various calcium supplements, herbs, multi-vitamins, expensive supplements that left me in sticker-shock. Just for a simple 1-2 month supply of friggin' calcium!

I finally burned out and simply couldn't afford all the demanding "you absolutely must take this expensive-as-heck cod liver oil, and buy expensive groceries to remineralize your teeth and never touch any conventional foods again..."

Talk about head-spinning.

And while I'm not by any means demeaning the works, suggestions, and recommendations from the many experts who have given such advice (I've seen several people who blog their experiences remineralizing teeth using those methods), as hard as I tried, I simply could not afford to take on such a diet. Or even obtain the cod liver oil, for that shamefully embarrassing matter!

I went in search for "alternatives" to these expensive options. I found out about "eggshell calcium" from other health-bloggers who know far more than I do in the world of nutrients, vitamins, etc. 

So, when my mom made potato salad for Christmas eve, the same week after learning about eggshell calcium, I quickly snatched up her remaining eggshells, dumped em' all in a blender (that was already broken in two places... Now three. Oops!), and went to town.

The blender did not do the job. 

So my perfect nephews and significant other took turns with me crushing them in a bowl using nothing but a spoon (and occasionally experimenting with rigged, materials.)

By late-night, we were so sick of crushing eggshells that none of us could stand to look at them anymore. 

I even placed them in a baggie and went to town hammering down on them to make them more tolerable... or shall I say swallow-able.

It's not that they tasted bad, or at all. It's that not having them blended into a fine powder feels a lot like swallowing tiny glass shards without anything to drink. 

I was certain at one point that the very tiny, but not finely-powdered shells were scraping gashes into my esophagus as I swallowed.

So long story slightly less long and painful: That was the last time I bothered with eggshell calcium. I simply didn't have the proper food processor to turn the suckers into a fine powder, so I gave up.

And then, I went back in for my Depo-Provera shot this week and was reminded of how long I've been on it -- 9 years. I quickly felt the panic re-occur, creeping back up into my mind telling me "you're going to break your bones! You'll have osteoporosis at a young age. F--k the hard work involved and start chowing down on those damn eggshells!"

So, here I am. A full circle I have made and I'm about to attempt this experiment one more time, and hopefully find a cheap way to powder those eggshells so that I can use this super cheap method of getting plenty of calcium everyday.

I know, I should "invest" in a "good food processor," but honestly, that won't be happening just yet. Other things on the list to-get-asap.

However, since I've diligently shared every piece of information -- from oil-pulling, which yes, I do still practice, to eggshell experiments -- regarding ways to improve various health challenges, I decided I'd have to share this too.

This is the study I came across just today, and decided that I'd waste no time getting those eggshells smashed.

To be quick about it, here's a snippet from that study that totally sold me on eggshell calcium for increasing, improving, and just maybe, arresting the bone-density loss that may have already occurred: 

"A positive effect was observed on bone density in animal models of postmenopausal osteoporosis in ovariectomized female rats. In vitro eggshell powder stimulates chondrocyte differentiation and cartilage growth. Clinical studies in postmenopausal women and women with senile osteoporosis showed that eggshell powder reduces pain and osteoresorption and increases mobility and bone density or arrests its loss. The bioavailability of calcium from this source, as tested in piglets, was similar or better than that of food grade purified calcium carbonate. Clinical and experimental studies showed that eggshell powder has positive effects on bone and cartilage and that it is suitable in the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis."

Plus, just one spoon of the powder is said to contain from 800 - 1,000 milligrams of calcium!

*Some recommend taking magnesium with the shells because it may further improve tooth restoration.

*It's also important to try your best to get Vitamins D and C, at least. They go hand-in-hand with calcium, and are required for proper absorption.

If you too are interested in making your own eggshell calcium to consume, then I recommend seeing this informative tutorial-style post on how to do just that, and more on why you may want to.

^*Source: National Institute of Rheumatic Diseases, Piestany, Slovak Republic. Rovenský J¹, Stancíková M, Masaryk P, Svík K, Istok R.