Calcium
This mineral is critical to keeping bones healthy and strong. If you don’t regularly consume dairy products or other calcium-rich foods (such as spinach), keeping up with your calcium needs is tricky.
Adults should get 1,000 mg of calcium a day; women ages 51 and older and men ages 71 and older need 1,200 mg. But 4 in 10 adults didn’t get that amount, according to a 2024 study in the journal Nutrients. (One cup of whole-milk yogurt contains 300 mg.)
“If you don’t get enough calcium from your diet, your body will pull it from your bones,” says Bess Dawson-Hughes, MD, a professor of medicine at Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston. One widely known consequence of calcium deficiency is osteoporosis, a disease that raises the risk for bone breaks and fractures.
If you’re at risk for osteoporosis (about half of women 50 and older are), if you have osteoporosis, or if you don’t get enough calcium from food, consider a supplement.
Pay attention to the amount: Too much calcium can raise your risk for constipation, kidney problems, and—according to some research—heart attacks. Talk to your doctor about the right dose.
You shouldn’t get more than 2,500 mg if you’re under age 51; those older should limit their intake to 2,000 mg. Calcium carbonate is generally the most economical type, but if you find it constipating, try calcium citrate.