Development and Evaluation of a Calcium Rich Supplement on Bone Turnover of Peri and Post Menopausal Women

Abstract

Nutritional deficiency particularly of calcium can result in poor formation and mineralization of the bones Less optimal intake of calcium by both male and female subjects have been reported and the major contribution was from milk and its products Though plenty of synthetic calcium supplements are available it is important that a calcium rich food supplement that could be easily prepared at household level be made available to combat calcium deficiency Objective of the study is to to formulate and standardize an indigenous low cost calcium rich food supplement and to study the impact of supplementation on the bone resorption and formation markers Methods Development of calcium rich supplement was attempted by addition of optimized proportions of leaves of Sesbania Grandiflora seeds of Sesamum indicum Eleusine coracana Glycine max Vigna mungo with various processing techniques like soaking germination sun drying roasting and powdering The powdered ingredients were combined in different ratios as variation A 15 25 30 25 5 B 15 20 30 25 10 and C 10 25 30 25 10 and were made into ladoos The products were subjected to calcium analysis organoleptic evaluation using standard techniques and shelf life analysis A Randomized controlled trial was conducted with 60 subjects distributed equally in control and experimental groups including perimenopausal and postmenopausal women wherein the supplement with the highest scores in all attributes was subjected to supplementation for 6 months 1200 mg per day and 800 mg per day of calcium each was supplemented for postmenopausal and for perimenopausal women respectively as a midmorning and evening snack Outcome measures like serum calcium betacrosslaps bone resorption marker and total P1NP bone absorption marker were assessed after 3 months and after 6 months Results Variation A had a higher acceptance with respect to higher scores in sensory evaluation both by panelists and commoners The product increased the calcium intake by 1200 mg per day and 800 mg per day for postmenopausal