Cardiovascular Drugs: Calcium Blocker

Calcium blocker defined
A calcium channel blocker otherwise known as calcium blocker is a class of drugs that inhibits the movement of electrolyte calcium into the cells of the heart and arteries. The entry of calcium into the heart's cell membranes causes contraction and narrowing of the arteries. Calcium blocker drugs are used in the treatment of coronary heart disease by relieving heart contraction and dilating the arteries to provide enough amounts of oxygen. Unlike other drugs, calcium blocker drugs have distinct effects on the heart and circulatory system, which makes them suitable for varied conditions.

Uses and side effects of calcium blocker drugs
Calcium blockers were first introduced in the U.S. in 1981 while sustainable release of its formulations was made available in 1991. These drugs are used to give relief or treat angina, hypertension, arrhythmias (irregular heartbeat), and migraine prophylaxis. However, calcium blocker drugs have not been proven effective in treating patients with unstable angina since they seem not to reduce risks of heart attack. Other effects of calcium blocker drugs in the cardiovascular area include dilation in heart peripheries, reduced heart rate (negative chronotropy), decreased cardiac contractility (negative inotropy), and reduced cardiac conduction (negative dromotropy).

A calcium blocker is also widely used for the treatment of high blood pressure because of its active properties that effect in lowering blood pressure. Also, a calcium blocker drug is effective for treating abnormal heart rate like atrial fibrillation.

The most common known side effects of calcium blocker drugs that have been reported are constipation, nausea, edema (swelling of legs with fluids), headache, rash, low blood pressure, drowsiness, and dizziness.

Diltiazem or verapamil are types of calcium blocker drugs that have more effect on the heart. Administering them on patients with heart failure and to those who had an attack within the past month must be with care because these drugs positively reduce the heart's ability to pump blood. On the other hand, nifedipine and nicardipine are known dihydropyridine calcium blocker drugs whose benefiting effects are on blood vessels, with a negligible effect on the heart. Nimodipine has effects in the brain's blood vessels so it used as a preventive drug for spasms in patients who experienced subarachnoid hemorrhage (bleeding in a certain part of the brain).

The calcium blocker drugs
These are the types of calcium blocker drugs in the market: Diltiazem, Verapamil, Amlodipine, Felodipine, Isradipine, Lacidipine, Lercanidipine, Nicardipine, Nifedipine, Nimodipine, and Nisoldipine.

What is calcium? - Calcium facts

The element calcium is the third most abundant alkaline earth metal in the earth's crust. However, despite this, it cannot be found as an element in nature since it easily binds a chemical reaction with air and water to combine with other elements and form compounds. Calcium facts show that the most abundant calcium sources that occur naturally are chalk, gypsum, and lime. Lime is made up of calcium carbonate, which is basically a compound of calcium and carbon.

The Romans were the first people to use calcium in the first century but it was Sir Humphrey Davy of England who discovered the element in 1808 by extracting the metal using electrolysis of calcium carbonate and hot mercury in order to extract the metal calcium. Since then, calcium has been in use in industries for many applications.

Other calcium facts are: calcium supplements sold commercially are actually compounds of calcium citrate or calcium carbonate. The body merely breaks these compounds down during digestion and separate calcium for the body to absorb. Calcium facts are 99% of our calcium intake goes to the bones and teeth. The remaining 1% mixes in the blood and used by the body, which is integral for other vital processes such as blood coagulation, muscle contraction, and proper functioning of the central nervous system.

More calcium facts
The body needs calcium to maintain bone density. Otherwise, long-term calcium deficiency can lead to the crippling disease known as osteoporosis especially in the elderly. Osteoporosis happens when the bones become loses its density and becomes brittle – which is prone to fractures even in minor accidents. In the U.S., more than $13 billion is spent for health insurance services in treating osteoporosis-related incidents such as fractured bones.

Calcium pantothenate, popularly known as vitamin B5 or pantothenic acid, is a compound essential in cell metabolism and synthesis of enzymes like carbohydrates, fatty acids, and even protein in order for the release of energy.

Calcium facts – daily requirements
We need calcium all throughout our lives. Infants age 0-6months and 7-12months are required a daily intake of 210mg and 270mg, respectively. Toddlers need 500mg of calcium per day while preschool children aged 4-8 years old need 800mg. Calcium is vital between the ages 9-18, especially during the growth spurt years of puberty in which adolescent tend to be most active. Calcium needs to be maintained at 1000mg each day from 19-50 years of age to prevent osteoporosis later in life. Older people aged 50 and above need 1200mg of calcium while pregnant and lactating women need 1300mg of calcium to support the infants as well as themselves.

Calcium Diet

A foremost mineral crucial for healthy teeth and bones, Calcium is needed in great amounts by the body. It has also been deemed a very important component, not only for the bones, but for every muscle tissue contraction of the body, from skeletal muscle responsible for the movement of the limbs, to the involuntary and voluntary muscles accountable for intestinal content movement, and to the heart muscle beating tirelessly and regularly all through life.

A lot of adults do not obtain the adequate amount of calcium in their diet; only about twenty to thirty percent of calcium is absorbed by the body in an average diet. A calcium diet is very essential for the body to obtain sufficient amounts of calcium that the body needs for its daily normal function. Keeping pace with the required body calcium every day, helps keep up with bone metabolism and allows the bone to maximize a satisfactory amount of bone mass while growing that will help maintain the bone mass in later years of ones life.

There are a lot of sources for high calcium diet in the foods one eat, including dairy foods and non-dairy foods. The content of calcium in food differ depending on components from a lot of foods, which means that some food may have more or little calcium content with various brands.

High calcium foods such as dairy products are one of the most widespread calcium diets that people take on in a lot of industrialized countries. Dairy food which are calcium-filled intended for every meal are already obtainable in the market today, and if fat and calories have made you cut back dairy food intake, there are a lot of fat free and less fat assortment of yogurt, cheese, and milk products.

Foods with calcium such as vegetables, nuts, and seeds are good sources of calcium, and should be included in ones prepared calcium diet as well. The calcium contained in vegetables with low oxalate such as kale, is well absorbed by the body compared to calcium in cow’s milk. One can also include calcium supplements to add-on to the calcium diet if the dietary sources are inadequate.

Although there are a lot of calcium supplements obtainable in the market today, differences should be taken into consideration when selecting the suitable supplement. Always know the elemental calcium present in the tablet.

High calcium diet is very essential for maintaining healthy bones, teeth, and body. A good calcium diet should contain sufficient amounts of calcium required by the body either through combining high calcium food sources and calcium supplements, or just sticking with natural calcium-filled foods. Always remember though, that too much of anything is bad, including calcium. So stick with the needed and required amounts of calcium and don’t overdo it.