Effects of calcium supplementation on body weight reduction in overweight calcium stone formers

A randomized, placebo-controlled trial was conducted in overweight calcium stone-forming (CSF) patients, to evaluate the effect of calcium supplementation associated with a calorie-restricted diet on body weight (BW) and fat reduction and its potential changes upon serum and urinary parameters. Fifteen patients were placed on a hypocaloric diet for 3 months, supplemented with either calcium carbonate (CaCO₃, n = 8) or placebo (n = 7), 500 mg bid. Blood and 24-h urine samples were collected and body composition was assessed at baseline and after the intervention. At the end of the study, final BW was significantly lower vs baseline in both CaCO₃ (74 ± 14 vs. 80 ± 14 kg, P = 0.01) and placebo groups (80 ± 10 vs. 87 ± 9 kg, P = 0.02) but the mean percentage of loss of body weight and body fat did not differ between CaCO₃ and placebo (7.0 ± 2.0 vs. 8.0 ± 3.0%, P = 0.40 and 13.0 ± 7.0 vs. 13.0 ± 10.0%; P = 0.81, respectively). After CaCO₃ or placebo, no significant differences versus baseline were observed for urinary parameters in both CaCO₃ and placebo, except for a higher mean urinary citrate in placebo group. These data suggest that increasing calcium intake by calcium carbonate supplementation did not contribute to a further reduction of BW and fat in overweight CSF patients submitted to a hypocaloric diet nor altered urinary lithogenic parameters.