Calcium and the dialysis patient
Poorly functioning kidneys cannot eliminate phosphorous, as these high levels of phosphorous accumulate in your blood, calcium is leeched from the bones in your body's attempt to balance the calcium/phosphorous levels.
This leeching of calcium from your bones causes your bone density to decrease, causing a weakness which can lead to fracturing.
By taking "phosphate binders" - calcium tablets, we lower the level of phosphorous in the blood, thus reducing the amount of calcium taken from the bones.
You can also reduce the amount of phosphorous in your blood, thus increasing the amount of calcium in your bones by reducing the amount of processed foods, dairy foods, and meat in your diet.