# Tums for calcuim



## franeich (Oct 26, 2010)

Any one use ground up tums for calcium.
Read about it on this site. http://www.azeah.com/Care-Sheets.asp?id=105


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## DeanS (Oct 26, 2010)

franeich said:


> Any one use ground up tums for calcium.
> Read about it on this site. http://www.azeah.com/Care-Sheets.asp?id=105



Yeah! I saw that on his care sheet...innovative. I would only use them for humans...but then it occurred to me that the flavor might get them to take their calcium. Of course, if you're feeding cactus once or twice a week...that's all the calcium they need!


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## shmily1605 (Oct 26, 2010)

I would be careful with this because I believe antacids inhibit the absorption of the calcium in humans. I don't think it would be much different with torts. Some researchers think that this is true some dont; I just wouldn't risk it. Im going by what my drug book says.


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## DeanS (Oct 26, 2010)

The thing is...TUMS are pure calcium...that's the antacid! This is why so many people drink milk when the get an ulcer.


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## pongpagong (Oct 26, 2010)

Oh..this is nice..thanks for the infos..


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## Madkins007 (Oct 26, 2010)

The active ingredient in Tums and similar meds is Calcium carbonate. There are also some binders to help hold it all together, dyes, and flavorings. I suspect Tums uses some form of sugar to make it more palatable to humans.

There is probably no real risk in using Tums as a source of calcium. My only issue is that a jar of pure calcium carbonate powder (like the NOW! brand Terry K recommends) lasts a long time, so is more cost effective, and is more chemically pure since it lacks the binders, dyes, flavorings, etc.


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## shmily1605 (Oct 26, 2010)

DeanS said:


> The thing is...TUMS are pure calcium...that's the antacid! This is why so many people drink milk when the get an ulcer.



Dean Im not sure you understand what I am saying. Stomach acid is required for good mineral absorption, including calcium & magnesium. Calcium carbonate antacids neutralize the stomach acid needed for their absorption. The stomach's job is to produce and hold digestive acid and enzymes. When antacids are used regularly, the stomach senses this and, over time, increases its acid production rate set point. Taking antacids to reduce acid can lead to the production of excessive acid and more discomfort. They can be counted on to produce malabsorption of minerals. My point is they should NOT be used on the regular basis. Although it IS calcium; Calcium carbonate is an insoluble salt that must be ionized by stomach acid before it can be absorbed therefore if there is little stomach acid it will NOT work. This is a tricky subject that my professor had to explain to us. Also everyone wonders if you should be giving the calcium carb everyday well this is why I dont. Its best they get calcium that does not have to be converted.



I hope I explained it to where you understand because I know it took a while to understand what my prof was saying.  A little bit Im sure would not hurt them but the question is what is a little bit? Here is a website http://www.ajcn.org/cgi/content/abstract/36/1/32 it may not let you view the whole article. At this website it even says it clearly at the bottom under Tips and warnings. http://www.ehow.com/how_3953_absorb-calcium-supplements.html


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## Madkins007 (Oct 26, 2010)

shmily1605 said:


> This is a tricky subject that my professor had to explain to us. Also everyone wonders if you should be giving the calcium carb everyday well this is why I dont. Its best they get calcium that does not have to be converted.



What kind of calcium does not have to be converted?

Also, what kind of class was this?


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## DeanS (Oct 26, 2010)

shmily1605 said:


> DeanS said:
> 
> 
> > The thing is...TUMS are pure calcium...that's the antacid! This is why so many people drink milk when the get an ulcer.
> ...





I completely understand...and understood it the first time in Kinieseology 20 something years ago! Calcium carbonate only disrupts the system if you overdose! I know a lot of people who do (or did) take like 10 Tums a day (in divided dosages). But if you (or your tort) take the minimum amount (1 or 2 for us...I would imagine <.25 for a hatchling - yearling) once or twice a week it's not going to hurt anything...Just as in most things...COMMON SENSE!


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## shmily1605 (Oct 29, 2010)

Madkins007 said:


> shmily1605 said:
> 
> 
> > This is a tricky subject that my professor had to explain to us. Also everyone wonders if you should be giving the calcium carb everyday well this is why I dont. Its best they get calcium that does not have to be converted.
> ...



1. Pharmacology

2. Calcium Citrate and calcium found in foods. Tums provides calcium carbonate as a chalk and that makes it difficult for the body to absorb. 




DeanS said:


> shmily1605 said:
> 
> 
> > DeanS said:
> ...





You sound upset...I did not say that you did not understand the theory I was taught; I simply was saying that I hoped I explained it right to where you could understand ME! Ten Tums a day is fine but it is NOT meant for long term use. Tums would be fine; I will go back to what I stated in the first post, "I would be careful with this because I believe antacids inhibit the absorption of the calcium in humans." I clearly said BE CAREFUL MEANING don't overdo it. I never said not to. The calcium carb. we give to our torts now is essentially the same as Tums therefore it too should NOT be given on the regular basis. This is MY OPONION and if you donÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t like it then donÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t worry about it. Isn't that what makes this world so great, the fact that we ALL have our OWN opinion.


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## MichelleCarrigan78 (Oct 29, 2010)

I was also curious about using TUMS for calcium, Thanks for the info, i'll keep using the cuttlebones


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## Madkins007 (Oct 30, 2010)

MichelleCarrigan78 said:


> I was also curious about using TUMS for calcium, Thanks for the info, i'll keep using the cuttlebones



I cannot say that cuttlebone is a better option. The trick to calcium is get particles so small they can easily be absorbed by the animal's digestive system, then into the blood and cells.

Cuttlebone usually gets broken into largish chunks that often pass through before a lot of digestion can occur. Some digestion/absorption is occurring, but not as much as would from a similar amount of a fine-grained powder.



shmily1605 said:


> The calcium found in foods was sort of a gimme- I had intended the question to be more what SUPPLEMENTAL calcium does not have to be converted, but that was a fair response.
> 
> I researched Calcium citrate before I chose Calcium carbonate. What bothered me about ciltrate is the lower percentage of calcium in a same-sized dose. It is acidic and the particles are finer and it is absorbed more readily, but you need roughly twice as much citrate to accomplish what carbonate does (citrate- 21% elemental calcium by weight, carbonate is 40%)
> 
> ...


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