I was a pre-med student but I did not pursue medicine so here I am, self-diagnosing. I have not been diagnosed with hypocalcemia, this is just something that my registered nurse friends were thinking that I could possibly be experiencing.
What is hypocalcemia?
Hypocalcemia is also known as calcium deficiency disease. It is when one’s calcium levels (<2.1mmol/L) is low in the blood. As we know, calcium is an important mineral for our body to function. It is associated with bone and muscle development, remember how our parents would tell us that we need to drink milk for calcium so we will have stronger bones? There you go, that’s the reason why. When we don’t get enough calcium, it can lead to osteoporosis.
I was diagnosed to have scoliosis in 2012 and I have been working on exercise, monitoring how often I am getting back pains and my alignment. About 3 years ago, I also noticed how my left toe was missing it’s alignment and now I have bunions. I have been noticing recent months how my scoliosis is getting worse, the pain, it’s no longer on the parts were the curvature were detected, I was also having pains when I try to stand straight and I’ve been running lately but I was an avid runner in the past that I experienced pain in my feet and how my other toes are starting to get out of alignment. Instead of focusing on resolving the alignment issues and the pain, I tried to understand why I am starting to be weak. As we know, women is more prone to osteoporosis and I have noticed in my diet that I am not a big fish eater and milk drinker so I assumed that I could be experiencing hypocalcemia. I was not even drinking any calcium supplements. I know, it’s because I have bone-associated condition, I already think I have this. Well, I am not really saying I have hypocalcemia but I just realized how important taking care of our bones from an early age. So I did my research and want to share what I found out and how I made changes in my lifestyle.
As a woman in my 30’s, I should be taking 1,000mg of calcium per day. Women start early in ensuring that we receive the right amount of calcium is because women undergo menopause in their older years and once menopause starts, there will be less estrogen produced in the body resulting for the bones to be thinner faster. Notice how our moms and grandmas are like shrinking when they get old, it’s because of the bones being thinner. Not only that, I also need Vitamin D. Vitamin D helps with the absorption of Calcium.
Causes of Hypocalcemia
Speaking of Vitamin D, Vitamin D deficiency can be a cause of hypocalcemia because one may be in-taking the right amount of Calcium to meet the body’s requirements but when it is not absorbed by the body then it don’t make sense at all. I guess since Vitamin D is also associated with the bones, that led me to associate that I might have hypocalcemia.1
Besides vitamin D deficiency, other causes are hypoparathyrodism, magnesium depletion, severe hypermagnesemia.
Symptoms of Hypocalcemia
So maybe the reason why I thought that I might have hypocalcemia is because I have experienced some of these symptoms.
- Purpura (large bruised areas)
- Tingling pins and needles sensation in and around the mouth, and in the extremities of the hands and feet. (I did not experience it in the oral region, but I have been noticing it happen in my hands and feet more often that it usually does)
- Unrelieved and strong contractions of the hands and the large muscles of the body.
- Tendon reflexes are more active. (this is something that I was also noticing happening)
- Confusion or memory loss
- muscle spasms (something that I have been experiencing more often lately compared in the recent months)
- muscle cramps (same as muscle spasms, I have been experiencing more often that usual and also longer that usual)
- weak and brittle nails
- Dry, coarse skin, dermatitis, hyperpigmentation and eczema.
As you can see, calcium plays a big role in our skeletal and muscular system, not only that but also in neurotransmitter release so if you start experiencing a lot of this symptoms, I would recommend for you to consult your doctor, it may not be hypocalcemia but it can be something else.
Hypocalcemia diagnosis
If your doctor, suspects calcium deficiency, they’ll take a blood sample to check your blood calcium level. The total calcium level, albumin level and ionized or “free” calcium level.2
The most important investigation to measure serum parathyroid hormone. If one has hypocalcemia, parathyroid hormone concentration s will be high as parathyroids are responding to the reduced negative feedback of calcium.
Hypocalcemia treatment
Obviously, calcium deficiency can be treated with calcium supplements. One should not be taking more than recommended because it can lead to kidney stones.
The most common calcium supplements are
-calcium carbonate
-calcium citrate
-cakcium phosphate
My mom gave me calcium and vitamin D supplements and that’s what I started taking in the beginning of this year.
I also read that too much calcium can cause constipation. I am already suffering occasional constipation so that was a little bit of my concern back then that’s why I was not taking calcium supplements. I am not also a big fan of medications, I know supplements are not really medication but I prefer natural intakes of vitamins and minerals. So I researched on foods that has high calcium. I learned that those green leafy veggies such as broccoli and kale are high in calcium, also sardines and sunflower seeds and yogurt so I got a lot of them. LOL.
I hated sardines but I appreciated it more knowing how it can help my body. I really love spanish sardines. After 1 month of being on these high calcium diet and drinking calcium and vitamin D supplements, I have less bone pains and muscle spasms. I may not have hypocalcemia but making these changes in my life really helped me feel better. I hope you learn something with this blog post.
1.http://www.clevelandclinicmeded.com/medicalpubs/diseasemanagement/endocrinology/hypocalcemia/
2.http://www.clevelandclinicmeded.com/medicalpubs/diseasemanagement/endocrinology/hypocalcemia/
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