Wednesday June 25, 2014 (foodconsumer.org) -- G.L. Hofmeyr at East London Hospital Complex University of the Witwatersrand in Eastern Cape,  South Africa and colleagues conducted a review study and found that taking calcium supplements in a dose of greater than 1 gram of calcium per day during pregnancy reduced risk of pre-eclampsia in women who followed a low calcium diet.  

Taking calcium supplements during pregnancy also reduced risk of eclampsia and preterm birth.

Both pre-eclampsia and eclampsia are common causes for serious morbidity and mortality.   Eclampsia is an acute and life-threatening complication of pregnancy characterized by convulsions, which occurs often in a woman who has developed pre-eclampsia.

According to the review report, the World Health Organization recommends calcium 1.5 to 2 grams of calcium per day for pregnant women who use a low calcium diet.  (David Liu, PHD)

Hofmeyr GJ, Lawrie TA, Atallah AN, Duley L, Torloni MR.  Calcium supplementation during pregnancy for preventing hypertensive disorders and related problems.  Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2014 Jun 24;6:CD001059.