Calcium and Vitamin D Show Strong Promise For Colorectal Health

Supplements of Calcium and Vitamin D may promote the health of the cells in the colon and rectum, offering potential protection from tumor development, reports an important new study.

The Calcium-Vitamin D combination was found to normalise the health of cells in the colon and rectum, according to findings published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention.

Researchers from Emory University, the University of Minnesota, and the National Cancer Institute and the National Institutes of Health conducted a pilot, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, clinical trial in 92 men and women with a history of benign colorectal tumours.

The researchers randomly assigned the participants to receive daily calcium 2000 mg (2.0 g) and/or vitamin D supplements (800 IU), or placebo for six months.

Markers of the health of cells were found to increase in the calcium, vitamin D, and calcium plus vitamin D groups relative to the placebo, said the researchers.

"These results indicate that calcium and vitamin D promote colorectal epithelial cell differentiation and may 'normalize' the colorectal crypt proliferative zone in sporadic adenoma patients, and support further investigation of calcium and vitamin D as chemopreventive agents against colorectal neoplasms," reported the researchers.

The potential benefits for the vitamin-mineral combination in relation to colorectal cancer is important because colorectal cancer accounts for nine per cent of new cancer cases every year worldwide. The highest incidence rates are in the developed world, while Asia and Africa have the lowest incidence rates.

It remains one of the most curable cancers if diagnosis is made early.

Source: Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention November 2009, Volume 18, Pages 2933-2941 , "Effects of Vitamin D and Calcium on Proliferation and Differentiation In Normal Colon Mucosa: a Randomized Clinical Trial"