Calcium is an essential mineral that is required for a range of physiological functions in humans including bone formation and muscle contraction. Calcium ions also make up a large part of the cellular messaging system and so are integral to physiological normality. Calcium absorption rates increase as the concentration of calcium in the food increases, but there is a saturation point that is reached at some point around 10 mM of calcium when it is in the gluconate form. Calcium absorption has been shown to be greater in younger individuals compared to older individuals. Consuming 2000 mg of calcium in the diet causes a relative decrease in the amount of calcium absorbed compared to a 300 mg calcium diet, showing evidence that the intestine adapts to the amount of calcium in the diet and absorbs more when there is a sparsity of the mineral. This modification and adjustment has been shown to be greater in the young compared to the elderly, and this probably reflects a more physiologically active gut.
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