Calcium Malate Chelate by Designs for Health.

Designs for Health’s Calcium Malate Chelate offers the best chelated minerals sourced from the world’s leader in chelated mineral science, Albion Advanced Nutrition. The calcium in Calcium Malate Chelate is now fully chelated to glycine and malic acid, providing a combination of the two most health promoting and most absorbable forms of calcium available. Malic acid is found naturally in apples and other fruits and vegetables. Glycine is a very low molecular weight amino acid found in foods and can be synthesized by the body. Calcium can be perfectly chelated to two moles of glycine. In a study performed by Professor Robert P. Heaney, MD from Creighton University, Omaha, Nebraska, comparing absorption rates of many common forms of calcium, it was observed that Albion's calcium completely and properly chelated to glycine has far greater absorption than calcium citrate, calcium hydroxyapetite, calcium carbonate and even greater absorption than calcium from milk. (Heaney, R.P. et al Calcit Tissue Int (1990) 46: 300-304.) True chelates are not only absorbed better than calcium salts, but they are retained better in body tissue such as bone. Chelated calcium is better tolerated than non-bound calcium salts as they do not cause the milk-alkali syndrome which can cause stomach upset and kidney problems. Also, the ligands the minerals are chelated to is important as the chelated compound will remain chelated throughout the gut and into the bloodstream. Mineral salts from non-true chelates break apart far sooner, usually in the stomach, leaving the body with the extra compound to deal with. Ionic minerals interfere with the absorption of other minerals including phosphorus and iron whereas chelated minerals do not. Also, vitamin D is added which helps to resorb calcium that otherwise would be excreted.