The building material of which bones and teeth consist

First separate, then in the same crystal

In human hard tissue, calcium and phosphorus are present not as a loose admixture but as an ordered compound: calcium ions and phosphate groups together form a crystal lattice that lays itself between the protein fibers of the tissue. Both elements are nonetheless listed individually in EU law, with their own opinions and their own sentence structure. This page keeps to that separation.

The following two entries name, for each element, the stock in the body, the usual origin in food, and the statements authorized for it in unchanged wording.

The share that does not circulate in the blood

Anyone thinking of minerals only as a laboratory value omits the greater part of the story. With calcium and phosphorus the mass sits where it eludes quick measurement: in a solid, crystalline phase that is mechanically load-bearing and at the same time serves as a reserve.

Calcium in tissue and calcium in serum

In the blood plasma of a healthy adult, the calcium concentration moves within a very narrow range of about 2.2 to 2.6 millimoles per liter. Just under half of it is bound to albumin and other proteins, the rest is present free as an ion. Only this free share participates in signaling processes. The organism maintains this narrow corridor via parathyroid hormone, calcitriol, and calcitonin — three messengers that coordinate absorption in the intestine, recovery in the kidney, and exchange with the hard tissue.

This also settles one thing: a single serum value within the normal range says nothing about how much calcium was supplied over the past years. The blood value is held stable at the expense of, or in favor of, the tissue stock, not the other way round.

Where the non-mineralized phosphate actually sits

With phosphate the situation is similar, with one difference: an appreciable part of the non-mineralized phosphate sits not in the blood but inside the cells — as a constituent of ATP, of creatine phosphate, and of the phospholipids of every cell membrane. The serum value therefore captures only a narrow window of a far larger turnover. The kidney is the major control variable here: it filters phosphate and retrieves an adjustable share.

Why the Union list carries both elements separately

The list of authorized health claims assigns every statement to exactly one nutrient. A claim naming two elements in one breath does not exist there — not even where both sit in the same crystal in the tissue. The reason is procedural: every claim goes back to a separate opinion of the responsible EFSA panel, in which it was assessed whether the data submitted suffices for exactly this nutrient and exactly this function.

This is why a total of four separate statements appear for the subject of this page — two for calcium, two for phosphorus. In the original they read:

• „Calcium contributes to the maintenance of normal bones“ — Pursuant to Regulation (EU) No 432/2012
• „Phosphorus contributes to the maintenance of normal bones“ — Pursuant to Regulation (EU) No 432/2012
• „Calcium contributes to the maintenance of normal teeth“ — Pursuant to Regulation (EU) No 432/2012
• „Phosphorus contributes to the maintenance of normal teeth“ — Pursuant to Regulation (EU) No 432/2012

The word „normal“ is no filler here. It confines the claim to the proper state and excludes any reading in the direction of improvement, prevention, or recovery. Anyone using these statements may neither shorten them nor render them in their own words.

What makes up the daily amount in a mixed kitchen

The two minerals behave very differently in food. Phosphate is present nearly everywhere protein is — an ordinary menu therefore exceeds the reference value without any effort. Calcium, by contrast, hangs on a few rich sources; if one of them falls away, the daily total drops noticeably.

• Hard cheese is the densest calcium-rich item in the range; 30 grams of Emmental bring about 330 mg and at the same time supply around 240 mg of phosphate.
• Milk and yogurt contribute about 120 mg of calcium per 100 grams — reliable, but relevant only in larger portions.
• Kale, broccoli, and arugula lie between 50 and 210 mg per 100 grams and contain little oxalate, which would dampen absorption.
• Almonds, sesame, and hazelnuts contribute both calcium and plenty of phosphate, but are rarely eaten in large quantities.
• Mineral water is the only source whose content appears on the label; the range runs from a few to over 500 mg of calcium per liter.
• Rolled oats, lentils, and whole grain bread are decidedly rich in phosphate but supply comparatively little calcium.

How much of the amount taken in actually passes through the intestinal wall varies considerably. For calcium the rate in adults usually lies between a quarter and a third and rises markedly during growth phases; vitamin D increases it, oxalic acid and phytate lower it. Phosphate from animal foods is absorbed at about 60 percent, phosphate from additives by contrast almost entirely, because it is already present there in free form.

These figures are indications from consumption studies and nutrition tables, not prescriptions for individuals. They explain why two meal plans with the same calorie count can lie far apart on these two minerals.