Page 60 - FoodFocusThailand No.206 MAY 2023

STRATEGIC R&D

The Recommended Amount of Daily Calcium absorbed into the body’s digestive system. Additionally, fish
Intake bones, a byproduct of the seafood industry, are rich in
collagen, peptides, amino acids, and amino acid derivatives.
Table 1 Amount of calcium Thai people should intake per day Some types of amino acids and amino acid derivatives found
Recommended Daily Calcium in collagen, such as proline and hydroxyproline, have been
Age Range
Intake (milligrams)
shown to stimulate calcium absorption in the small intestine
Infants younger than 6 months 210 in animal experiments.
Infants aged 6-12 months 260 Currently, researchers have developed a new product of
bio-calcium supplement with low cost and high calcium
Children aged 1-3 years 500
absorption efficiency compared to organic calcium
Children aged 4-8 years 800 supplements that are more expensive. This bio-calcium is
Teenagers aged 9-18 years 1,000 biological calcium derived from animal bones, such as fish
Adults aged 19-50 years 800 or crocodile bones, which are waste materials from industrial
Seniors over 50 years of age 1,000 processing that have no value and contribute to environmental
pollution. Bio-calcium extraction from animal bones uses
gentle methods to preserve organic substances such as
Sources of High Calcium Foods collagen, peptides, and amino acids in the structure. It is
People of all ages should consume additional calcium from reported that bio-calcium contains calcium-binding peptides
food because insufficient calcium intake can increase the risk has high bioavailability, meaning it is highly effective in
of osteoporosis. Therefore, it is recommended to consume absorbing calcium into the body. Therefore, bio-calcium from
high-calcium foods that help supplement calcium, such as milk animal bones is another option for developing high-nutritional-
and milk products. However, some Thai people do not like value calcium supplements with higher bioavailability than
milk and milk products, so there are alternative food sources commercially available organic calcium supplements. Bio-
that provide high levels of calcium. These include small fish calcium supplements extracted from fish and crocodile bones
that can be consumed whole, dried shrimp, tofu, or green leafy are fine white powder with a creamy appearance and no foul
vegetables that have moderate to high levels of calcium and odor. They can be better absorbed into the body than calcium
low levels of oxalates, such as Chinese kale, bok choy, carbonate and have a structure of calcium phosphate in
watercress, Chinese spinach, gotu kala, and winged beans, hydroxyapatite, the same as that found in human bones.
among others. In addition, to ensure that the body gets Thus, it can be formulated into bio-calcium supplements
adequate calcium, consuming calcium supplements is also containing vitamin D and other essential nutrients.
an attractive option. Additionally, the bioavailable calcium can be incorporated
into various food products, including bakery, dairy, processed
Properties of Calcium Supplements meat, and beverages, to enhance their nutritional calcium
Calcium supplements available in the market come in various content.
forms for consumers, especially inorganic calcium supplements However, the aforementioned research is currently in the
such as calcium carbonate, tricalcium phosphate, and calcium research stage for commercial purposes and has registered
citrate. Additionally, calcium supplements can bind with organic for a patent with the Department of Intellectual Property.
compounds, such as calcium citrate malate, calcium gluconate, Thus, if this bio-calcium product is commercialized in the
calcium lactate, and calcium amino acid chelates. The ability near future, it could reduce the importation of expensive
of the intestine to absorb calcium depends on the chemical organic calcium supplements, address insufficient calcium
composition of each type of calcium supplement, particularly intake, and help Thai citizens maintain strong bones and
its water solubility. Generally, the most effective calcium teeth. Furthermore, it could also add value to the leftover
supplements with high absorption rates in the gastrointestinal raw materials from the animal bone industry.
tract tend to dissolve well in water, such as calcium citrate and
calcium citrate malate, even though they are more expensive
than calcium carbonate, which has lower water solubility.
Currently, calcium supplements are also available in slow-
release capsules and tablets, which can improve their
absorption rates in the gastrointestinal tract. However, these
forms tend to be more expensive than other types of calcium
supplements.
Bio - Calcium from Fish and Crocodile Bones
Bio - Calcium from fish and crocodile bones have been
found to contain hydroxyapatite (HA, Ca (PO ) (OH) ),
4 6
2
10
the same form of calcium found in human bone structure.
Meanwhile, calcium in eggshells and oyster shells is in the
form of calcium carbonate. These natural sources of calcium
are less expensive than synthetic calcium from calcium chelate
and calcium phosphate, which are water-soluble and easily
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