Absorption of Calcium and Strontium from Milk and Nonmilk Diets

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Abstract
The availability of calcium from milk was contrasted with that from CaCl2 in rats, rabbits and human subjects, and with calcium supplied with grain in cattle, rats and rabbits. In cattle, the retention of single oral doses of Ca45 and Sr89 gave essentially the same results as the conventional determination of calcium balance. Calves on a milk diet absorbed and retained a very high percentage of the calcium present. Similar animals on a hay diet and grain diet showed a much lower absorption and retention. A calf on hay and grain for 30 days showed the typical high calcium utilization when returned to a milk diet. The calcium retention of an 11-year-old cow was improved by the addition of dried skin milk in the ration. Young and old rats absorbed about one and a half times as much calcium45 from milk as from a solution of CaCl2 or from CaCl2 + grain. Young and old rabbits showed no increased Ca45 absorption from milk. Three out of 4 human subjects absorbed an average of 34% ingested Sr85 from CaCl2 as compared with 82% from milk.