A new study warns people with low calcium levels are at increased risk of suffering from a cardiac arrest.
For the study, researchers measured blood calcium levels in 267 patients who had suffered a cardiac arrest and 445 other people who did not. They then compared the data from both groups.
Those who had experienced a sudden cardiac arrest had lower serum calcium levels, the results revealed, according to a report by the Independent.
“Patients with serum calcium in the lowest quartile (bottom 25%) had twice the odds of sudden cardiac arrest compared to those in the highest quartile (top 25%, even after controlling for multiple patient characteristics including demographics, cardiovascular risk factors and comorbidities, and medication use,” said lead author of the study Dr Sumeet Chugh from the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute in Los Angeles is quoted as saying by the Independent.
Blood calcium levels of less than 8.95 milligrams per decilitre puts a person at risk of the condition. More research is needed to determine whether improving one's intake of calcium will reduce the risk of a heart attack.
The findings also showed patients were likely to suffer from diabetes and chronic kidney disease.
The study was originally published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings.
