Does coffee cause calcium loss or bone loss?

There is no evidence that caffeine has any harmful effect on bone status or calcium economy in individuals who meet the currently recommended daily allowances of calcium. Studies linking caffeine-containing beverages to osteoporosis risk were conducted in populations with substantially low calcium intake overall.

How can you offset caffeine's effect on calcium?

Adding as little as 1-2 tablespoons of milk to a cup of coffee is enough to fully offset caffeine's small negative effect on calcium absorption, according to peer-reviewed research.

Negative effect of caffeine on calcium absorption is small enough to be fully offset by as little as 1-2 tablespoons of milk.

Caffeine effects on calcium offset by milk

Q: Does caffeine reduce calcium absorption?

Yes, but the effect is very small. Research published in PubMed found that the negative effect of caffeine on calcium absorption is small enough to be fully offset by as little as 1-2 tablespoons of milk added to your coffee.

10/7/2025

Drinking coffee isn’t going to have a huge impact on your calcium absorption, but it might have none at all with just one tablespoon of milk.

Study

PubMed: Effects of caffeine on bone and the calcium economy

Low calcium intake is clearly linked to skeletal fragility, and it is likely that a high caffeine intake is often a marker for a low calcium intake.

The negative effect of caffeine on calcium absorption is small enough to be fully offset by as little as 1-2 tablespoons of milk.

All of the observations implicating caffeine-containing beverages as a risk factor for osteoporosis have been made in populations consuming substantially less than optimal calcium intakes. There is no evidence that caffeine has any harmful effect on bone status or on the calcium economy in individuals who ingest the currently recommended daily allowances of calciu!