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.

Make Healing Water Using Dr. Emoto's Simple Water-Structure-Changing Technique:

Make Healing Water Using Dr. Masaru Emoto's Simple Water-Structure-Changing Technique:

Most of you have heard about the experiment by Dr. Masaru Emoto where he used prayer, music, and writing different words onto pieces of paper and placed them under a container of water to find that the structure of the water changed in such ways that confirmed that the words carry energy/vibration that has the ability to literally change the water's structure. When he examined the samples, he found that the ones that had words such as "love" under them had formed a perfect hexagonal crystal snowflake. Upon examining the samples that had words like "hate," he found the structure to be chaotic and not formed like the snow-flake- looking crystals.

"The result was that we always observed beautiful crystals after giving good words, playing good music, and showing, playing, or offering pure prayer to water. On the other hand, we observed disfigured crystals in the opposite situation. Moreover, we never observed identical crystals," says Dr. Emoto's statement about the experiment on his website.

If you haven't heard of this experiment, I implore you to watch the video below (from Dr. Masaru Emoto's website) before continuing. It's pretty powerful stuff. *You can also visit Dr. Masaru Emoto's website, which talks all about his work and findings.

Now, I'd like to share with you how we might be able to use the wonderful Dr. Emoto's findings to easily change the structure of the water we drink.

When I first read about Dr. Emoto's water experiment, the first thing I did was write the word "love" on a piece of paper, and set my cup of water over it. 30 minutes later, I drank the water.

I've since made a habit of doing this with my water every night. I write the words "love, healing, health, and joy" on the paper and let my glass of water sit on top of it for about 30 minutes before I drink it.

Simple, right? And best of all, it costs nothing really (unless you don't have a writing utensil, a glass for the water, or water.)

I do this with my other beverages as well.

I figure you can also just write the word on the cup/glass. I'm also assuming that this little technique for changing the vibration of something can be used in many, many ways such as with your food and any other thing you consume. In fact, I even wrote it on the stuff I brush my teeth with! I use a blend of oils to brush my teeth with, so I just took a marker (it isn't even visible on the bottle, but I know it's there and that's all that matters) and wrote the words "love, perfect health, joy" on the bottle.

I am not sure what the "rating" of the vibration for the words "perfect health" and "joy" would be, but they are words that feel very powerful and positive to me, and they're in-line with my intentions -- to have perfect health inside out, including dental health, to have and be love and to have joy -- so I figured I'd try those out as well as love.

Let me know if you can think of any other high-vibration words that could be used for certain intentions/desires!

I figured since Dr. Emoto's experiment produced such magnificent results, it would surely work the same way for us if we were to utilize his method for our water, and then drink it. So, since we could all use good health, and since love is the most positive vibration there is, why not attempt to change the water we drink into something that just might encourage healing or good health within us?

Dr. Emoto's experiment was conducted with the intentions of showing that words are powerful enough to impact water and humans. Since we're made up of something like 70 percent water, it would stand to reason that words alone can change the structure within us as well, whether positive or negative.

Dr. Emoto reminded us that the words we use have an impact on every part of our body and we need to be mindful about this.

That's really powerful information that I personally feel like can be utilized for a multitude of magnificent possibilities

We can use this to our benefit, though. It's my thinking that there could be many incredible ways we can use this free information to our benefit.

For the time being, I'm using it to see if perhaps by doing this simple, free "technique" my health can benefit.

I hope you all will join me in this simple experiment and see if you can benefit from it as well. At the very least, this "challenge" (if you'd like to think of it as such) will benefit us in the way that we'll definitely become more mindful of the words we use when we speak to ourselves, right? It might even encourage us to use more positive words when we talk to ourselves (and others), now that we are aware that words probably impact our entire makeup as well.

So, take a minute to repeat the word "love" slowly and deliberately for a few seconds.

I have been letting words like "love" and "health" flow over and over through my mind as I picture the words, noting every syllable and every letter.

Picturing the letters going across my forehead and then absorbing into my brain. Maybe that sounds odd, but when I was deliberately saying the word "love" in my mind, that is the image that popped up -- the word slowly moving across my forehead like those electronic signs you see going down the road, announcing some ad for something or what-not.

Then, the word itself just kind of looked as if it were fading into the area of my head, so I came to the idea that imagining it "absorbing" into my head, and then flowing through my body could be beneficial.


I sincerely hope you guys will join me in this fun, free challenge that just might help improve our health and well-being! It's worth a shot, right? I will be keeping an eye out for any changes or improvements as I continue this (focusing on the water experiment) and then I'll meet you back here to discuss what occurs.

Please, if any of you do this or something similar (you can tweak it to your own needs and desires!) share with me how it goes for you in a comment or in an email or message to me. I always reply to my readers and I love sharing stories and outcomes of our personal journies with each other. It brings me so much joy to share our techniques and results together, so please don't hesitate to jump in and let me know how you do it, and how things turn out! 

Review of Sari Foods' Nutritional Yeast Flakes + Personal Experience

 Sari Foods Natural, Non-Fortified Nutritional Yeast flakes are
a low-sodium, ancient Egyptian superfood with so much to be said about them! These are 100% natural, they are non-GMO and contain no MSG. Nutritional Yeast Flakes are full of vitamins, minerals and protein that vegans, paleo, halal, and virtually everybody can indulge in guilt-lessly.

Being a low-calorie food with so many versatile ways to add it into your everyday diet, it's very easy to get plenty of the yeast flakes each day.  These flakes can be added to many different dishes or simply eaten out of the bag, if you wanted to. I find that they go pretty well with several of my favorite dishes, and I have been looking forward to trying these on as many foods as possible. What an exciting, intriguing and unique superfood these yeast flakes are! I'm very new to them, and actually hadn't ever heard of such a thing until a couple of weeks ago. So please stick around while I give you the low-down on this awesome stuff!

 

         Note to IBS, candidiasis sufferers:

    Deactivated, dried yeast flakes that are free of candida albicans, which is actually a very important aspect that I feel compelled to expand on since a lot of my blog here has discussed digestive issues including candidiasis and IBS, and since I know many of my readers also struggle with these and other digestive issues, I feel it very important to note that as many of you know, I too have suffered severely with IBS/Candidiasis, so for those of you interested in a superfood like the yeast flakes from Sari Foods, you may find it useful to be notified that this, while it is a yeast product, should not upset candidiasis or IBS issues.

                 I will thoroughly document my journey of adding   this awesome, unique superfood into my diet, so you will all have something to go on. If any side effects or problems occur at any time during my use of a product, that information is always noted, often as an "update" at the bottom of a review if anything note-worthy arises after I've published a review of a product.

Important Product Specs:
Gluten free
Vegan
Non-toxic
Dairy free
Non-GMO
MSG free
Kosher
Halal
Naturally occurring
A Non-synthetic whole-food
Low Sodium
Re-sealable bag contains 14 servings
- Packaged in a GMP Facility (stands for Good Manufacturing Process.)

 Where does it come from? 

The answer might surprise you as much as it did me, but Sari Foods' Nutritional Yeast flakes come from molasses! 

Nutritional Yeast grows on sugar cane and on beet molasses. Heat treatment is used to deactivate the yeast, meaning once it's gone through the treatment, there's no longer the concern of it being able to grow inside of your stomach -- deactivated yeast.

Vitamins, Minerals
Sari Foods' Nutritional Yeast is "comprised of 50% protein (a complete, bio-available and vegan source,) over 20% fiber, contains all 18 amino acids, 15 minerals, and natural Vitamin-B complex and Beta-glucans, which are known for their extreme immune enhancing properties."

Contains loads of B-vitamins including, B-5, B-6, B-2, Niacin, Folate, and thiamine. Other Vitamins and minerals included are Biotin (which is beneficial for skin, hair and nails), selenium, zinc, iron, potassium, phosphorous, Molybdenum.

8.32 grams of protein in each serving. 4.8 milligrams of sodium.
Nutritional Yeast Flakes are a complete protein, meaning they contain 18 amino acids, including the ones our bodies cannot create itself.

One serving contains around 4 grams of fiber.

And one thing I was totally stoked to learn: The Nutritional Yeast Flakes contain Beta-glucans! I love those guys because they have amazing health properties, and are good for the immune system, and may help some people avoid illness like colds and flu! I once took a supplement that contained beta-glucan and I'm telling you, I would feel so fantastic when I took that supplement!  These Beta-glucans not only give your immune system a nice boost, but they protect against cancer and lower cholesterol.

Close-up of the flakes, which are soft and dissolve easily in warm liquids, including your mouth!

Another Close-Up. Sorry, I'm picture crazy!

 Taste:
These Yeast Flakes have a flavor all of their own. Sari Foods hit the nail on the head pretty nicely when they described the flavor as "cheesy, salty, creamy, and nutty." That really sums up the bold flavors that your tongue detects with each taste of their Nutritional Yeast Flakes.

The pungent flavor is certainly reminiscent of an aged cheese, and somewhat like that of Parmesan only stronger, more sharp. The aftertaste is just as bold as the first taste, but it has something like an odd, yet super clean taste, if that makes any sense at all. It feels a lot like the taste I have right after I've given my mouth a thorough cleansing with peroxide! Nothing unpleasant, but oddly... clean, especially considering I just had a very strong cheese-y like taste in my mouth seconds before.

The nutty flavor is there, but not as powerful as the chees-y and saltiness of the Nutritional Yeast flakes. The nuttiness would best be compared to that of a mixture between cashew and almonds, to me anyways. In fact, it's also somewhat similar to raw hemp seeds.

As a cheese lover, these Nutritional Yeast flakes are absolutely delectable in any soup, chili or other dish that is well complimented by the added flavor of a sharp cheese. Spaghetti, even cheese dips like queso. They kind of melt in your mouth, and dissolve well in a warm dish.

You know the creaminess sour cream gives a soup or to chili? Imagine that times about 3, that's what adding a couple teaspoons of the Nutritional Yeast Flakes to a bowl of soup of chili will do. Plus, the addition of an even stronger cheese flavor is total heaven for me, especially in chili. I like adding a little shredded cheddar and a teaspoon or two of the Nutritional Yeast Flakes. Talk about bold flavor, then!

Taste Updates:
1/8/2015
Tonight I sprinkled a small amount of Nutritional Yeast Flakes on a gordita, cheese-y taco I was eating and holy cheese-alternative! The little bit of yeast flakes I added to my gordita really enhanced the cheesy flavor already within it. I'm one of those folks who hasn't ever said "that's too much cheese." There is no such thing! I love that these flakes really do the trick for a cheesy craving. 

I am an extreme, huge, fanatic for cheese, which is why I have never attempted to cut dairy out of my diet. I absolutely adore cheese. 

And yet I could see the Nutritional Yeast Flakes actually being just enough to work as the perfect cheese alternative, if one were trying to quit dairy all together! 

I've been trying the Nutritional Yeast Flakes on a new food every night since I got the awesome stuff and have yet to find a food that wasn't super with it sprinkled on top!

I even had a saltine cracker snack, with the yeast flakes sprinkled on top and they were delicious! I couldn't get enough of them!

I'm looking forward to trying the flakes on many, many more foods, so I will happily update on this if ya'll are interested. I'm almost tempted to even sprinkle some onto my PB&J sandwich!

Kidding. Kidding. I'm not *that* bad of a cheese lover.

Informative back-side of package.

 

How to Use Sari Foods Nutritional Yeast Flakes:
The label on the re-sealable bag recommends 2 full tablespoons (16 grams) daily.

As I stated previously, the cheesy-like flavor of these flakes allows you to really get creative in the kitchen. Simply sprinkle them on any dish you like from raw smoothies to salads and popcorn or even create vegan nacho dips or macaroni and cheese. Sari Foods also mentions, on their website http://sarifoods.co/nutritional-yeast.htmlthat it goes great on tacos, baked potatoes, vegetables and salads. I didn't even think about using the flakes on those, but the tacos and baked potatoes are two I'll definitely have to try!

So far, I've been extremely fond of using the Yeast Flakes on chili, chicken chili (my mom makes some seriously bad-a** chicken chili, and I highly recommend the Yeast Flakes in chicken chili), soups, spaghetti and virtually any other dish that uses cheese, including parmasean cheese.

 To me, the flavor of the yeast flakes does somewhat resemble Parmesan, yet I find spaghetti even better when I substitute the parm for these Yeast Flakes. It's more pungent, to me, so I like that. I will go into more detail about flavor in a previous section titled "taste."

Close-up of text on back-side of package.

Health Benefits:
 "15-40% of Americans are deficient in B vitamins which can lead to deep and ongoing fatigue, brain fog, irritability, depression, and even insomnia (as they play a crucial role in melatonin production). The body depends on B6 to make the hormones serotonin and norepinephrine, which affect both mood and feelings of happiness. With improved Vitamin B intake, we can sleep well, balance our hormones. increase our energy levels, clarity & overall mental function. " - Sari Foods.

"Fight Aging and Free Radicals. With highly absorbable amounts of nucleotides (the building blocks of DNA & RNA), Sari Foods Nutritional Yeast promotes cellular repair and regeneration. Then, by combining the two antioxidants glutathione and selenium, our Nutritional Yeast Flakes create a special enzyme called glutathione peroxidase that is known to neutralize free radicals and protect us from their damage." - Sari Foods

Summary:
I could definitely see myself using the Nutritional Yeast Flakes for the long term. I am still quite shocked at how much I like them. I can't say I have ever tasted a superfood that was this good. I can even enjoy a small bite straight, without mixing with food. 

Me, proudly clutching the Nutritional Yeast Flakes

I feel like most people will be able to tolerate this well, if not love it like I do, especially cheese lovers. I can't imagine any cheese lover not adoring the flavor the Nutritional Yeast Flakes offer. And if anyone did have an issue with their flavor, mixing into a favorite dish that's complimented well by cheese will absolutely make them tolerable. I'd even go so far as to say that most kids will handle them fine, too, especially when mixed into another dish.

With the health benefits found in this ancient Egyptian superfood, I can't think of anyone who I wouldn't recommend the Nutritional Yeast Flakes to. I am totally ecstatic at the nutrition properties, and the many great aspects I've laid out in the "product specs" section such as being vegan, non-GMO, non-MSG and more.

To sum this up briefly enough for it to still be considered a summary, I will say that these are an incredible and tasty way to add nutrition and I would love to have them in my life for the long term, if not forever!

*Special thanks to Sari Foods for not only introducing me to a new, amazing and tasty superfood, but for also allowing me an opportunity to experience them for myself!

Sari Foods can be found (and purchased from) on their Amazon page or their company website.

Disclaimer: I am not a specialist, expert, professional or doctor of any kind. Content on this blog is not intended to be taken as medical advice, diagnosis, treatment or advice of any sort. I'm simply sharing information about my own experiences and results from use of a product or activity in hopes of providing useful information to readers, not to be taken as a patient/medical adviser relationship. I am not responsible for what readers choose to do after viewing the content here. Furthermore, I do not hold an "exceptional" or other special relationship with any company mentioned on this site. I'm simply a consumer who worked with the company on a review that is in compliance with FTC's guidelines. That means, everything you read here is my own words, not anything of the company's. I was not provided with monetary compensation for my review. All information posted has been done so with complete honesty. No action should be taken based solely on the content of this publication ( I'm not responsible.) Readers who rely on the information in this blog to replace the advise of an appropriate health care provider assume all risks of such behavior.