The Effects of Additions of Calcium Carbonate to the Diet of Breeding Mice

Abstract

Richards & Greig (1952) reported pale livers and enlarged flabby hearts in weanling mice whose mothers' diets contained 1-2 % of added calcium carbonate. It seemed likely that the calcium carbonate had induced an unexpected anaemia in the young.The work reported in the present paper was undertaken to investigate this possibility and to examine the pathology of the condition. The presence of anaemia was confirmed by haemoglobin estimations, and fuller examination of the blood indicated that it was probably of the iron-deficiency type. A further experiment showed that the anaemia could be prevented by feeding an iron supplement, but not by balancing the additional dietary calcium with sufficient phosphorus to restore the original Ca: P ratio of the diet. METHODS

Effect of calcium supplementation on daily nonheme-iron absorption and long-term iron status

“…Initial animal studies conducted in rats in the 1940s and 1950s showed that high dietary calcium intakes (0.3-3% of the diet by wt) significantly slowed the rate of hemoglobin regeneration in anemic rats and induced anemia in ironreplete rats and their litters (3,16). More recent animal studies with 59 Fe labeling and whole-body retention and isolated gut segment experiments have confirmed earlier findings.…”

Utilization of Iron by the Chick as Influenced by Dietary Calcium and Phosphorus

“…Chapman and Campbell (1957) also found that excess dietary calcium exerted an adverse effect on iron utilization by the rat. Greig (1952) observed that adult female mice and weanling mice become anemic when fed diets containing 2% calcium carbonate and a low level of iron. He also found that the anemia was similar to iron deficiency anemia and could be alleviated by adding ferrous fumarate to the diet.…”

“…Chapman and Campbell (1957) observed that hemoglobin regeneration by anemic rats was inversely related to the level of dietary calcium. Greig (1952) reported that female breeding mice fed diets containing excess calcium developed anemia which was similar to iron-deficiency anemia. Weanlings born of mice fed excess calcium also suffered from anemia.…”

“…Weanlings born of mice fed excess calcium also suffered from anemia. Greig (1952) found that the effects of excess dietary calcium could be prevented by adding iron to the diet but could not be prevented by restoring the original calcium to phosphorus ratio through phosphorus supplementation. Waddell and Sell (1964) found that excess dietary calcium reduced hemoglobin concentration, red blood cell number and liver iron concentration of growing chickens.…”

Studies on the production of beef from zebu cattle in East Africa IV. Variation in blood haemoglobin and its response to the feeding of dicalcium phosphate

“…The effect of the dicalcium phosphate supplementation in depressing the haemoglobin content of the blood appeared to be the greatest in those animals undergoing breeding or lactation stresses, whereas young weaned stock under normal growth stresses were not affected. Greig (1952) had reported a depressing effect on haemoglobin levels in breeding mice from feeding calcium carbonate. The anaemia was of the type associated with iron deficiency, and occurred in both mothers and litters.…”