Book Review: The Calcium Lie II – What Your Doctor Doesn’t Know Yet
In 2008, the authors published the first edition, The Calcium Lie: What Your Doctor Doesn’t Know Could Kill You. Then, in 2013, they updated the information in The Calcium Lie: What Your Doctor Doesn’t Know Yet. In this review we will look at the revised edition.
Dr. Robert Thompson, MD, who maintains a medical practice in Alaska, was at one time unaware of what he is discussing in this book. He, like most well-intentioned health professionals, treated patients according to what he had learned in medical school for many years. Kathleen Barnes, health journalist and author, lives in North Carolina. Dr. Thompson says that Kathleen helps him communicate in terms her readers understand.
This reviewer has administered numerous homeschool assessments over the years in which the Overview section of the tool they use includes a question, “Which mineral is most needed for bone strength?” Many have answered correctly, based on what was learned and based on the “Calcium” assessment tool.
Our authors want us to remember that the test that determines whether a patient has osteoporosis or its precursor, osteopenia, is the dexa MINERAL bone scan. This name should help us remember that bones are made up of many minerals, one of which is calcium. By supplementing calcium alone, we actually make our bones stiffer: calcification can occur in the arteries, kidneys, and other places in our bodies. Dr. Thompson reminds us throughout the book that “Calcium makes concrete hard!”
Having entered medicine with “altruistic” ideas, Dr. Thompson had grown disenchanted with his profession and was ready to resign. He reconsidered when in 1996 a peer-reviewed directory named him one of “America’s Best Doctors.” Encouraged, he decided to continue making a difference.
Mineral Broke (Chapter 1): This foundational chapter states that bones consist of at least 12 minerals. “Excess calcium can cause:
• Kidney and gallstones
• Arterial plaque (and heart disease)
• Bone spurs (joints/osteoarthritis)
• Calcium deposits in tissues other than bone
• Brain cell dysfunction, brain shrinkage, and dementia.” (p. 9)
• Waterfalls
• Cancer
• Diabetes
• Hypothyroidism
• Hypertension (p. 29)
• Obesity (p. 39)
• Migraines (p. 43)
“Too much calcium causes the adrenal glands to be suppressed so the kidneys retain needed magnesium in an attempt to keep these two minerals in balance.” (p. 19)
Before the invention of refrigeration, our ancestors used sea or rock salt to preserve food. Our natural balance of minerals went away with this change. “Because a mineral ‘fingerprint’ is passed from mother to child, each generation has become progressively more deficient in these essential minerals.” (p. 12)
To add further damage to our systems, when the use of iodine in the manufacture of bread and canned goods was exchanged for cheaper bromine, we began to see an increase in “thyroid disease and cancer, breast cysts, fibrous changes, sensitivity cyclical inflammation and cancer, prostate inflammation and cancer, and ovarian hormonal dysfunction, ovarian cysts, endometriosis and ovarian cancer. (p. 13)
Table salt destroys health and the best mineral supplement is unrefined rock or sea salt. Dr. Thompson explains that Hair Tissue Mineral Analysis (HMTA) provides the best possible analysis of mineral levels and guides the physician in proper supplementation. He recommends only Trace Minerals, Inc. for testing.
Throughout the book, Dr. Thompson gives mini-lessons on biochemistry that all doctors study in medical school. Surprisingly, most doctors have forgotten the biochemistry of it and continue to follow the “calcium lie”, “the calcium myth” (chapter 2) and “the vitamin lie” (chapter 7).
Our authors devote chapters to the following health conditions and how they relate to calcium:
• Osteoporosis, Osteoarthritis and Calcium (chapter 3)
• Digestive Dilemmas: Protein Maldigestion, Sodium Deficiency, and Cell Membrane Dysfunction (Chapter 4)
• Metabolic failure How excess calcium causes weight gain, thyroid and adrenal malfunction, and five types of hypothyroidism (Chapter 5)
• Women’s issues: pregnancy, childbirth, and menopause (Chapter 6)
Stress plays a key role in our health. Thompson and Barnes discuss this topic and its relationship to calcium (Chapter 8). They stress that “stress management should be a regular part of a healthy lifestyle.” (p. 176)
In Chapter 9, The Road Back to Health, they give their readers the following steps:
1. Drink pure water.
2. Take supplements derived from ionic sea salt.
3. Whole food vitamins.
4. Essential fatty acids
5. Eat raw nuts and/or seeds every day.
6. Eat high-quality protein.
7. Get essential monosaccharides. (pp. 184-195)
The Calcium Lie II closes with chapter 10, “Doctor to Doctor: An Passioned Plea”. He encourages his readers to copy this chapter and take it to their doctors or, better yet, buy a copy of the book for their doctors.
Dr. Thompson and Kathleen Barnes present the facts behind their claims. Reading and following their instructions will improve our health.