What Mineral Supplements Should Be Taken in Divided Doses?

Calcium supplements should be taken in divided doses if your daily dosage is more than 500 milligrams. Several other mineral supplements may require either divided doses or single daily doses, depending on how much you take and the formulation. Follow prescription or package instructions for mineral supplements to get the most out of them and avoid adverse effects.

Your body cannot absorb more than 500 milligrams of calcium at one time, and single doses of supplemental calcium should not exceed that dosage. Because the adult recommended daily allowance for calcium ranges from 1,000 to 1,300 milligrams, you may need two or three equally spaced doses of this mineral per day. To figure out how much supplemental calcium is appropriate for you, take dietary sources of calcium into account or follow your doctor's instructions. To avoid gastrointestinal upset, most kinds of calcium supplements should be taken with meals. The exceptions are calcium citrate and calcium citrate malate, which you can take on an empty stomach.

If you are anemic, your doctor may prescribe supplemental iron. A prescription for supplemental iron may require either single or divided doses. Ferrous fulminate and ferrous sulfate, for instance, are prescribed with an initial daily dose of 325 milligrams and a maintenance dose of 325 milligrams three times per day. Do not take iron supplements without medical advice, because excess iron can be harmful or toxic. Children, postmenopausal women and men are especially vulnerable to iron overdose.

As with iron, you shouldn't take potassium supplements unless your health care provider prescribes them, because a potassium overdose is dangerous. Potassium is an electrolyte, and your body tightly controls blood levels of this mineral. Too much potassium can cause an irregular heartbeat, ruptured red blood cells and other problems. For this reason, multivitamins never contain more than 99 milligrams of potassium, even though a healthy diet rich in fruits and vegetables provides at least 4.7 grams per day. Potassium from food sources does not pose the risks that supplemental potassium does. If you need supplemental potassium to treat a medical condition, the prescription will likely call for either multiple divided doses per day or an extended-release formula.

Supplemental zinc taken to treat a minor deficiency or to maintain good health doesn't require a divided dose. However, if you're taking zinc lozenges to fight off a cold, divided doses are most effective. To treat cold symptoms, take zinc lozenges every two to three hours. Do not take more than 40 milligrams of zinc per day, and do not use the lozenges long term. Nausea is a common side effect of zinc supplements; take them with food to prevent discomfort.

Article reviewed by Brigitte Espinet 

View the original article here

Posted in: Divided, Doses, Mineral, Should, Supplements, Taken