Calcium | whatsinit

About

What it is and where it shows up.

Calcium is an essential dietary mineral required for bone and teeth formation, muscle contraction, nerve transmission, and blood coagulation. It is naturally present in dairy products, leafy vegetables, and legumes, and is widely added to foods as a fortification nutrient in various salt forms (carbonate, citrate, chloride, phosphate, lactate), all of which carry GRAS or approved food-additive status in major jurisdictions.

Safety summary

The regulatory and scientific consensus.

Calcium is broadly recognised as safe at normal dietary intake levels; JECFA has not specified an Acceptable Daily Intake, reflecting its status as an essential nutrient rather than a chemical additive. Excess supplemental intake above tolerable upper levels (2,000–2,500 mg/day for adults, age-dependent) is associated with kidney stone formation, hypercalciuria, hypercalcemia, and possible soft-tissue calcification. Individuals with chronic kidney disease, post-menopausal women taking high-dose supplements, and those on interacting medications (quinolone antibiotics, dolutegravir, lithium) should exercise particular caution.

Regulatory landscape

What food-safety regulators have decided.

Jurisdiction	Status	Note
FSANZ (Food Standards Australia New Zealand) (Australia)	Approved	Calcium and its salts are approved food additives and permitted nutrient sources under Food Standards Code Standard 1.3.1 (Food Additives) and Standard 1.3.2 (Vitamins and Minerals). No population UL for calcium has been separately established by FSANZ; Australian/NZ Nutrient Reference Values (2006) align with IOM age-stratified ULs.source
EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) (European Union)	Approved	Calcium salts are approved EU food additives listed in Annex II of Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 (e.g., E170 calcium carbonate, E333 calcium citrates, E341 calcium phosphates, E509 calcium chloride). EFSA's 2015 Scientific Opinion on Dietary Reference Values for calcium did not establish a population-level Tolerable Upper Intake Level, citing insufficient evidence; it set a dietary reference value (adequate intake) of 950 mg/day for adults. Calcium is also listed as an authorised nutrient source for food supplements under Directive 2002/46/EC.source
FSSAI (Food Safety and Standards Authority of India) (India)	Approved	Calcium salts including calcium carbonate, calcium chloride, calcium citrate, and calcium phosphates are permitted food additives and nutrient supplements under the Food Safety and Standards (Food Products Standards and Food Additives) Regulations, 2011, and the FSSAI Food Additives Regulations 2018. Calcium is also recognised as a permitted mineral for nutritional fortification under the FSSAI Food Fortification Standards.source

Who should approach with care

Whose guidance would steer them away.

Kidney Disease — Impaired renal function reduces calcium excretion, increasing risk of hypercalcemia and soft-tissue calcification; KDOQI guidelines recommend a maximum of 2,000 mg/day total calcium from all sources for CKD stages 3–5.

Elderly — IOM sets a lower UL of 2,000 mg/day for adults aged 51+ due to declining renal function and elevated risk of kidney stones and possible vascular calcification from excess supplemental intake.

Heart Disease — Some studies suggest high-dose calcium supplements (not dietary calcium) may modestly increase cardiovascular risk, particularly in post-menopausal women; NIH ODS notes the evidence is conflicting and expert consensus recommends food-first sources.

Pregnancy — Calcium supplements may reduce pre-eclampsia risk in pregnant women with low baseline intakes, but total intake should remain within age-appropriate UL ranges (2,500 mg/day); supplementation beyond this threshold during pregnancy warrants medical guidance.

Ibs — Excess calcium intake is listed among recognised adverse effects of supra-UL calcium consumption; constipation and gastrointestinal discomfort may be exacerbated in individuals with IBS, particularly from calcium carbonate supplements.

Research citations

The sources behind this verdict.

1FDA. Food Additive Status List — Calcium Carbonate, Calcium Chloride, Calcium Citrate, Calcium Phosphates (21 CFR 182/184), 2026. fda.gov
2PubMed. Calcium (Advances in Nutrition, 2019) — PMC6520034, 2019. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
3EFSA. Scientific Opinion on Dietary Reference Values for calcium (EFSA Journal 2015;13(5):4101), 2015. efsa.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
4PubMed. Calcium intake and urinary stone disease (Translational Andrology and Urology, 2014) — PMC4708574, 2014. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
5other. Dietary Reference Intakes for Calcium and Vitamin D: Tolerable Upper Intake Levels — Calcium and Vitamin D (Institute of Medicine / National Academies, 2011), 2011. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
6FDA. Small Entity Compliance Guide: Health Claims on Calcium and Osteoporosis; and Calcium, Vitamin D, and Osteoporosis (21 CFR 101.72), 2008.

Independently researched6 citations