Calcium intake in Asian countries, including China, India, Japan, and South Korea, is reported to be “very low” (ranging from 300 to 600 mg per day) and is associated with a higher risk of fractures in older women. There is.
Intake of essential nutrients for bone health, such as calcium and vitamin D, is especially important during the menopausal transition due to declining estrogen levels.
Although milk and dairy products are good sources of calcium, the high incidence of lactose malabsorption in Asian populations is a major obstacle, highlighting the urgent need for alternative calcium sources for these populations.
Carotenoids are abundant in brightly colored fruits and vegetables. For example, green vegetables such as spinach are rich in xanthophylls such as lutein, orange vegetables such as carrots are rich in beta-carotene, and red vegetables and fruits such as tomatoes and watermelon are rich in lycopene.
Eggshells are mainly composed of calcium carbonate, and are said to contain approximately 39% calcium.
At the same time, the home meal replacement (HMR) sector is growing rapidly due to aging populations and increasing numbers of single-person households around the world. HMR is a partially or fully cooked meal solution for easy consumption at home.
Korean researchers conducted a randomized, double-blind, controlled intervention study to examine the effects of eggshell and vitamin D-fortified HMR on BMD in postmenopausal women.
The study was funded by the Ottogiham Daebo Foundation, established by South Korean food manufacturing giant Ottogi Corporation.
Participants, aged 50 to 64 years, were randomly assigned to two groups for a six-month intervention.
The treatment group received three ready-to-heat HMRs each week consisting of curry, black bean sauce, and sweet pumpkin porridge fortified with eggshell powder and vitamin D. This group was the only one in which tomatoes were added to the curry.
The control group had the same HMR but was not enhanced.
Participants who agreed to continue in the study consumed the same HMR once a week for an additional six months. A total of 25 participants completed the six-month trial, and 11 completed the 12-month intervention.
At baseline, calcium and vitamin D intakes were inadequate in both groups.
The average content of calcium and vitamin D in the studied diets was 609.4 mg and 24.1 μg, respectively. During the intervention period, the participant ultimately received an additional 261 mg of calcium and 10.3 μg of vitamin D per day from her HMR.
In particular, the total calcium intake in the treatment group was 931mg/day and vitamin D was 13.5μg/day, which met the recommended intakes for Koreans of 800mg/day and 10μg/day, respectively.
We also found that after taking enhanced HMR for 6 months, the decrease in femoral neck BMD in the treatment group was significantly smaller than that in the control group (p = 0.035).
There were no significant differences in other bone markers between the two groups.
“Our study shows that consuming HMR fortified with eggshell powder and vitamin D three times a week for 6 months to 1 year was effective in rapidly reducing femoral neck BMD in postmenopausal women. It has been proven that this can be prevented.
“This suggests that a daily diet containing adequate amounts of natural calcium and vitamin D may ultimately prevent bone loss and fractures in people who are susceptible to calcium and vitamin D deficiencies and who do not regularly consume milk or dairy products.” the researchers wrote.
According to the researchers, their findings are consistent with previous studies that reported the beneficial effects of vitamin and mineral supplements containing chicken eggshell powder.
“However, our study is the first successful attempt to prevent bone loss in people with inadequate calcium and vitamin D intake through a regular diet fortified with chicken eggshell powder and vitamin D, rather than through supplements. We believe this may be a better dietary strategy to ensure sustainable calcium intake.
Functional HMR opportunities
Recent studies have shown that the incidence of osteoporosis in postmenopausal women is 38.4% in South Korea and 30.3% in China.
Diet plays an important role in bone health. With health and wellness trends increasing the demand for functional, customized HMRs, these products could be an approach to increasing intake of bone-supporting nutrients.
Of note, the HMR selected for this study was well tolerated by all participants, and no adverse events were found.
The results also showed that eggshells, a “cheap source of calcium”, could be a good alternative for people who have difficulty consuming milk and dairy products.
In addition, carotenoids are known for their biological activities, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, and reduced risk of cardiovascular disease and macular degeneration.
In this study, serum lutein and beta-carotene concentrations increased significantly in both the control and treatment groups, which may be due to the lutein-rich sweet pumpkin porridge.
Additionally, serum lycopene levels were significantly increased only in the treatment group that consumed curry with tomato.
“Given that tomatoes were only added to the study diet of the treatment group and that lycopene has previously been shown to prevent bone loss in animal models, it is unlikely that lycopene has a beneficial effect on bone health. Don’t overlook the possibilities.”
However, this study was limited by the small number of participants and the lack of quantitative measurements of participants’ exercise.
“Interventions involving sarcopenia prevention and exercise have been confirmed to have beneficial effects on bone health. We are currently conducting another intervention study to find answers about the effects of diet and exercise. doing.
“Large-scale intervention trials are needed to evaluate the effects of different doses of eggshell powder and vitamin D-containing foods on bone health in different age groups. Investigations into the complementary effects of tomatoes would also provide valuable information.” the researchers concluded.
Source: Nutrients
https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16081152
“Home meal replacement therapy fortified with eggshell powder and vitamin D prevents bone loss in postmenopausal women: a randomized, double-blind, controlled study.”
Author: Namseok Choo et al.
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