Regarding calcium, your bones, heart health, and supplementation. Calcium is very important and something a lot of people are low in especially women. It takes years to begin showing signs of osteopenia (translucent bones- something I had when eating meat). Recommended daily needs if you're under forty years old is 1000 mg daily and over forty is 1200 mg daily.
Regarding supplementation - it's best to find Calcium citrate as opposed to the other forms of calcium (Calcium carbonate) on the market. You don't want the one from rocks. Calcium Carbonate is from rocks and causes problems (and has been linked to heart attacks and strokes). Check your labels. Calcium citrate is food based and has a better absorption rate and doesn't build up on your arterial walls like calcium carbonate. Since Calcium Citrate is food sourced and the body recognizes it as such, it's utilized better by the body.
If we want to remain pain-free and avoid having our bones leach calcium from not having enough available in our blood stream then we need to eat very thoughtfully and likely supplement while learning the best foods that have optimum absorption.
Heart disease can be caused by lack of adequate calcium in the diet and lacking calcium can affect heart valves. A heart the beats irregularly is a heart in need of nutrients. Getting readily absorbable calcium helps our heart beat evenly and also helps other necessary electrical functions.
Meat eaters have more needs because of the high amounts of protein that cause bones to leach calcium which is why I promote a plant based diet and so does the Physicians Committee according to a Live Strong article. Other foods leach calcium from our bones too such as seafood, dairy, eggs, and coffee and anything with caffeine including chocolate. I strongly recommend avoiding those foods on a daily basis (I avoid 100% of the foods mentioned above and have seen improvement in my own aches and pains).
Leafy greens are a great source of calcium but you need to eat several helpings per day. That's why I eat a lot of salads. Oranges figs and kiwis are high in calcium and I eat them daily. There are additionally many more highly sources of absorbable plant based calcium if you check online. So many people suffer from arthritis and other ailments and just think that it's normal to age in pain- it isn't. Pain is a way our body tells us to pay attention to it. Thankfully most all pain problems are reversible if you catch them on time. Some seriously ill people have reduced chronic illness of the dire kind reversed by switching to a plant based diet. Not only does it help our body feel better but it also helps the earth and mother nature too. 