Phosphate

Phosphate is a mineral that combines with calcium to form the hard structure of bones and teeth. It is an inorganic chemical, is a salt of phosphoric acid.

Phosphate salts are retrieved from naturally occurring minerals, which are mined, refined, and purified for use in many applications. Phosphoric acid is produced starting with naturally-occurring phosphate ore mined around the world. As phosphoric acid, it can be combined with other elements such as calcium, potassium and sodium into "salts" of orthophosphates.

Foods high in phosphate include dairy products, whole grain cereals, nuts, and certain meats. Phosphates found in dairy products and meats seem to be more easily absorbed by the body than phosphates found in cereal grains. Cola drinks contain a lot of phosphate - so much, in fact, that they can cause too much phosphate in the blood.

Normally, the kidneys control the levels of phosphate in your blood, and the balance between phosphate and calcium in your body.

When your kidneys are not working, the level of phosphate in your blood can build up. High levels of phosphate can cause severe itchiness, lumps of calcium and phosphate in the bones, joints and blood vessels, causing brittle bones and painful joints bone disease.

Phosphate Benefits and Uses

People use phosphate salts for medicine. Be careful not to confuse phosphate salts with substances such as organophosphates, or with tribasic sodium phosphates and tribasic potassium phosphates, which are very poisonous.

Phosphate salts are taken by mouth for treating blood phosphate levels that are too low and blood calcium levels that are too high, and for preventing kidney stones. They are also taken for treating osteomalacia (often called "rickets" in children), a condition caused by a mineral imbalance in the body that leads to softening of the bones. Phosphate salts are also used for improving exercise performance, as an antacid for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), and as a laxative for emptying the bowels before surgery.

Phosphate salts and calcium are applied to sensitive teeth to reduce pain.

Rectally, phosphate salts are used as a laxative to clean the bowels before surgery or intestinal tests.

Healthcare providers sometimes give potassium phosphate intravenously (by IV) for treating low phosphate and high calcium levels in the blood, and for preventing low phosphate in patients who are being tube-fed.

Phosphate Food Sources

Many high phosphate foods are important sources of protein - meat, chicken, seafood, eggs, milk, cheese, yoghurt – and for this reason should not be avoided. Your Dietitian will advise you on the right amounts of protein foods for you.

However, avoid eating large amounts of high phosphate foods and fluids, particularly between meals when you are not taking a phosphate binder.

What are Phosphates?

PHOSPHATES IN EVERYDAY LIVING

Phosphorus is a nutrient vital to human, animal, and plant life. It is one of the most common substances in our environment, naturally occurring in our food, our water and our bodies. In your body, phosphorus is present in your genes, your teeth, and your bones -- even your muscles work because of the phosphorus in adenosine triphosphate.

Elemental phosphorus was discovered accidentally in 1669 while an impoverished German chemist was trying to make gold. Today phosphorus is an important part of many of the products that are indispensable to modern living and good health.

A single phosphorus compound can have a broad range of applications. For example, sodium tripolyphosphate (STPP), a critical ingredient to the performance capabilities of automatic dishwasher detergents, is also used to preserve the moisture and flavor in shrimp and hams and can be used in mineral processing.

When calcium is added to phosphorus compounds, we get products such as monocalcium phosphate, a leavening agent in baking to make biscuits tender. Dicalcium phosphate is used as a polishing agent in toothpaste, and tricalcium phosphate is the conditioning agent in salt that keeps it flowing freely.

Phosphoric acid is another example of phosphorus derivatives that most of us use every day. Refreshing cola drinks contain phosphoric acid, which adds tartness to their flavor. Should that cola be packaged in a bottle, the bottle may have been cleaned in an alkaline bath containing STPP, and the cap was probably made from sheet metal phosphatized in a phosphoric acid solution bath.

Phosphate products are a significant part of everyday living. In addition to their versatility, government authorities also recognize them as safe for worker exposure and handling and for use in the home. In addition to their versatility, phosphates are recognized by government authorities as safe for worker exposure and handling and for use in the home.

In many water bodies, phosphorus is the limiting nutrient and controlling its level is an important step in preventing eutrophication. In most areas, most of the phosphorus comes from the environment itself, and only a fraction (about a third) from consumer products.

There are a few characteristics that define phosphate properties, mainly molecular structure and pH (generally in a 1% solution). These determine the functionality of phosphates that in turn determine how the phosphates are used. They contribute buffering strength, sequestering (or chelating) power, dispersion and absorptive capabilities, and solubility. Phosphates are usually used as compounds of phosphate ions in combination with one or more common elements, such as sodium, calcium, potassium, and aluminum. They also offer benefits as nutrient sources.

Phosphates are classified into several primary groups based on the number of phosphorus (P) atoms. Each of these groups have functional properties ideal for many applications.