Is all Calcium created equal?

timber64

Member
I was looking into recipes to create my own roach chow, and more than one recipe called for straight calcium powder (nothing extra like D3 and other vitamins). For all the other ingredients, they keep saying you can get the cheapest version of each at the local dollar store, etc. So of course this got me thinking about calcium as well, as I certainly didn't want to use my Repashy or Arcadia products if I can save those for actual dusting.

This led me to wonder if there is a difference between all these reptile calcium powders on the market vs. calcium for humans you buy in the vitamin aisle at your local pharmacy/grocery store. Since I'm grinding everything to make the roach chow, couldn't I just use some calcium tablets I have in the medicine cabinet?

A quick Google search led me to an interesting article about the different sources of calcium, and that many of the cheap reptile products use oyster shells which aren't as good as calcium mined directly from the earth. This article warns we shouldn't be treating our reptiles so poorly and instead should give them human-grade calcium. I'm not saying I subscribe to this theory, which is the reason for my post. I'm curious what others know on this topic and does any of this make any true difference in your husbandry.

This article even mentioned using a supplement with both calcium and vitamins at the same time is a no-no since they can essentially counteract each other. Instead, it says you should dust one day with calcium and another day with vitamins. This could probably spur an entirely separate discussion, but curious about this as well.

OK all you scientific minds....GO!! :)
 
How much calcium does this recipe specify? I bought a jar almost a year & a half ago, used it every day, and it's still over half full.

I would not use calcium tabs from your medicine cabinet—no idea what's in them, what source they use, etc., and supplements aren't regulated in the US (neither are pet supplements).

Mined calcium isn't pure; calcium isn't found that way—it still contains other substances/compounds, and it's still processed.

I hope I don't have to caution again about sources that have a profit motive in the information they expound, or what's best for humans may not be what's best for reptiles. ;)
 
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How much calcium does this recipe specify? I bought a jar almost a year & a half ago, used it every day, and it's still over half full.

I would not use calcium tabs from your medicine cabinet—no idea what's in them, what source they use, etc., and supplements aren't regulated in the US (neither are pet supplements).

Mined calcium isn't pure; calcium isn't found that way—it still contains other substances/compounds, and it's still processed.

I hope I don't have to caution again about sources that have a profit motive in the information they expound, or what's best for humans may not be what's best for reptiles. ;)
The recipe only called for about a teaspoon of calcium for what would amount to a sizeable amount of roach chow when all said and done, so I agree that whatever I buy, I'll have for quite a while!!

And I completely agree about possible ulterior motives on the part of the author, as at the end, they present a line of products they recommend as the ONLY one worth using!! - Miner-All by Sticky Tongue Farms. I wasn't being swayed to buy their product, but rather found the info interesting about oyster shell vs. earth mined calcium.

And in case you missed my link to the article in my original post:
https://backwaterreptilesblog.com/b...vrmhcCyAZKSSAGtDfzOGw2TlHVjhkt2aWL16EKywBZ9zU
 
So interesting!
I use to use egg shells and smash into powder. Things are so easy these days.
Thanks for the links
 
The recipe only called for about a teaspoon of calcium for what would amount to a sizeable amount of roach chow when all said and done, so I agree that whatever I buy, I'll have for quite a while!!
That's kinda what I thought, and a good reason to use what you're already using.

And I completely agree about possible ulterior motives on the part of the author, as at the end, they present a line of products they recommend as the ONLY one worth using!! - Miner-All by Sticky Tongue Farms. I wasn't being swayed to buy their product, but rather found the info interesting about oyster shell vs. earth mined calcium.
That comparison didn't sway me either. Mined calcium can have just as much crap in it from contaminated runoff, ground water, dirty processing equipment, and a plethora of other sources.

Some other eye-openers...

allowable contaminants in food 🤢 🤮

 
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