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Osteoporosis
What is Osteoporosis?
Osteoporosis literally means "porous bone." Osteoporosis involves both the mineral (inorganic) and nonmineral (organic matrix, composed primarily of protein) components of bone. Bone is dynamic living tissue that is constantly being broken down and rebuilt, even in adults. Osteoporosis occurs when there is more bone breaking down than being formed.
Osteoporosis is usually without symptoms until severe backache or hip fracture occurs. Osteoporosis is best diagnosed by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) a technique that measures bone density.
What causes Osteoporosis?
Normal bone metabolism is dependent on an intricate interplay of many nutritional, lifestyle, and hormonal factors. Many dietary factors have been suggested as a cause of osteoporosis including: low-calcium-high-phosphorus intake, high-protein diet, high-acid-ash diet, high salt intake, and trace-mineral deficiencies, to name a few. Osteoporosis is most common in postmenopausal Asian and white women. Other risk factors for osteoporosis include: family history of osteoporosis; physical inactivity; short stature, low body mass, and/or small bones; and never having been pregnant.
What dietary factors are important in Osteoporosis?
A high-protein diet is associated with increased excretion of calcium in the urine and increased risk for osteoporosis, too. Raising daily protein intake from 47 to 142 grams doubles the excretion of calcium in the urine. However, too little protein is also associated with an increased risk for osteoporosis
In contrast, a vegetarian diet is associated with a lower risk of osteoporosis. Although bone mass in vegetarians does not differ significantly from that of omnivores in the third, fourth, and fifth decades of life, there are significant differences in the later decades. These findings indicate that the decreased incidence of osteoporosis among vegetarians is not due to increased initial bone mass, but rather to decreased bone loss.
A diet high in salt or acid ash also causes calcium removal from bones and increases calcium loss in the urine. Therefore, we recommend avoiding salt and eating an alkaline based diet. Basically, an alkaline diet is one that focuses on vegetables, fruit, nuts, and legumes while avoiding overconsumption of meat and dairy.
Soft drinks containing phosphates (phosphoric acid) are definitely linked to osteoporosis because they lead to lower calcium levels and higher phosphate levels in the blood. When phosphate levels are high and calcium levels are low, calcium is pulled out of the bones. The phosphate content of soft drinks, such as Coca-Cola and Pepsi, is very high, and they contain virtually no calcium. If you are concerned about developing or are at risk of developing osteoporosis you will want to eliminate soft drinks from your diet.
Refined sugar intake also increases the loss of calcium from the bone. Regular consumption of refined sugar increases loss of calcium from the blood through the urine. Calcium is then pulled from the bones to maintain blood calcium levels as foods containing refined sugar generally do not contain calcium.
Calcium is not the only nutrient that is important for bone formation. Many trace minerals such as copper, manganese, zinc and boron are also important. A deficiency in trace minerals can also predispose someone to osteoporosis.
Green leafy vegetables from the cabbage family, including broccoli, Brussels's sprouts, kale, collards, and mustard greens, as well as green tea offer significant protection against osteoporosis. These foods are a rich source of a broad range of vitamins and minerals that are important to maintaining healthy bones, including calcium, vitamin K1, and boron. Vitamin K1 is the form of vitamin K that is found in plants. A function of vitamin K1 is to convert inactive osteocalcin to its active form. Osteocalcin is an important protein in bone. Its role is to anchor calcium molecules and hold them in place within the bone.
In addition, soy foods, such as tofu, soy milk, roasted soybeans and soy extract powders, may be beneficial in preventing osteoporosis. In several double-blind studies, taking 40 grams of soy protein powder containing 80-to-90 mg isoflavones increased bone mineral density of the spine and hips in post menopausal women. Alfalfa is another isoflavone and vitamin K rich food that can also be included in the diet.
However, while numerous clinical studies have demonstrated that calcium supplementation can help prevent bone loss, the data is inconclusive in regard to any link between a high dietary calcium intake from milk and prevention of osteoporosis and bone fractures. When reviewing the data from the Nurses' Health Study, a study involving 77,761 women, researchers found no evidence that higher intakes of milk actually reduced fracture incidence. In fact, women who drank 2 or more glasses of milk per day had an increased relative risk of 45% for hip fracture compared to women consuming 1 glass or less per week. In other words, the more milk a woman consumed, the more likely she was to experience a hip fracture. This negative effect may turn out to be due to the vitamin A added to milk (at higher levels, vitamin A, but not beta-carotene may interfere with bone formation). Interestingly, if you look at the rate of osteoporosis worldwide, it is much higher in countries where milk intake is highest.
What nutritional supplements should I take for Osteoporosis?
Foundation Supplements. There are three products from Natural Factors that I think are critical in supporting good health:
- MultiStart (age and gender specific multiple vitamin and mineral formulas). Follow label instructions.
- Enriching Greens - a great tasting "greens drink" containing highly concentrated "greens" like chlorella, spirulina, wheat grass juice, barley grass juice, etc., and herbal extracts. Take one serving (one tablespoon) in 8 ounces of water daily.
- RxOmega-3 Factors - A true pharmaceutical grade fish oil supplement. Take two capsules daily.
OsteoSense Plus from Natural Factors Women's Line is based on the latest research to prevent bone re-absorption and osteoporosis. OsteoSense provides a comprehensive formula to augment the high nutrient levels in the MultiStart for Women formulas to provide an effective bone health strategy. This combination provides the therapeutic dosages given below for each of the discussed nutrients. OsteoSense provides calcium in the form of tricalcium phosphate. Here is why:
- Provides 2 molecules of calcium for every molecule of phosphorus making it a highly efficient source of both calcium and phosphorus.
- Clinical studies indicate that consuming calcium with phosphorus in the form of tricalcium phosphate is more effective at building strong bones than consuming calcium alone.
- Calcium cannot be utilized in the absence of phosphorus.
- Approximately 50% of North American women are deficient in phosphorus.
- Phosphorus is an essential component of bone, with 85% of the phosphorus in your body found in your bones.
- Recent clinical research indicates that calcium supplements without phosphorus may actually decrease the phosphorus available to the body for bone health thus contributing to osteoporosis.
Calcium supplementation alone has shown little benefit in treating or preventing osteoporosis. But, combined with vitamin D, calcium supplementation can slow the rate of bone loss by as much as thirty percent and it offers significant protection against hip fractures. The recommended dosage for calcium is 1,000 to 1,500 mg daily.
Vitamin D supplementation is associated with increased bone density and studies that combined vitamin D with calcium produced better results than either nutrient alone. Vitamin D supplementation is especially helpful for elderly people who don't get sufficient exposure to sunlight (which stimulates the body's manufacture of vitamin D)-those who live in nursing homes or farther away from the equator, or those who do not regularly get outside. The daily dosage recommendation for vitamin D is 400 to 600 IU.
Magnesium supplementation is thought by some experts to be as important as calcium supplementation in the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis. Women with osteoporosis have lower bone magnesium content and other indicators of magnesium deficiency than people without osteoporosis.The recommended dosage is 250 to 400 mg daily.
Vitamin B6, folic acid, and vitamin B12 are important in the conversion of the amino acid methionine to cysteine. If a person is deficient in these vitamins, there will be an increase in homocysteine level. Homocysteine has been implicated in a variety of conditions, including atherosclerosis and osteoporosis. Combinations of these vitamins will produce better results than any one of them. The recommended daily dosages are 25 to 100 mg for vitamin B6, and 400 to 800 mcg for folic acid and vitamin B12.
Boron is a trace mineral that has gained attention as a protective factor against osteoporosis. It appears that boron is required to activate certain hormones, including estrogen and vitamin D. In order to guarantee adequate boron levels, supplementing the diet with a daily dose of 3 to 5 mg of boron is recommended.
Ipriflavone is a semi-synthetic flavonoid (isoflavone) derived from the soy compound daidzein. Ipriflavone promotes the incorporation of calcium into bone. It also inhibits bone breakdown. Many clinical studies, including numerous double-blind studies, clearly show long-term treatment with ipriflavone (along with 1,000 mg supplemental calcium) is both safe and effective in halting bone loss in post-menopausal women or women who have had their ovaries removed as well as improving bone density in cases of osteoporosis. The typical dosage of ipriflavone is 600 mg daily.
Comment:
Although nutritional factors are important, I cannot stress enough that the best thing a person can do to strengthen their bones is to get physical activity. Physical exercise, consisting of one hour of moderate activity (e.g., walking, weight lifting, dancing, etc.) three times a week, has been shown to prevent bone loss and actually increase bone mass in postmenopausal women. In contrast to exercise, lack of physical activity doubles the rate of calcium lost from the system.
How do I know if the program is working?
If you are female, attention to bone health must be a lifetime goal. I recommend getting a baseline bone density assessment such as a DEXA scan. It can provide valuable information on your bone density and can also be used as a long-term monitor.
Feedback:
Please let Dr. Murray know how this program has worked for you by clicking here.
Condition Center Caution:
- Dr. Murray’s recommendations and protocols for nutritional support are not intended as a substitute for appropriate medical care.
- The products and the claims made about specific products on or through this site have not been evaluated by the United States Food and Drug Administration and are not approved to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent disease.
- If you have a medical condition or disease, please talk to your doctor prior to using the recommendations given.
- Do not self-diagnose. Proper medical care is critical to good health. If you have a health concern or undiagnosed sign or symptom, please consult a physician, preferably a naturopathic doctor (N.D.), nutritionally oriented medical doctor (M.D. or (D.O.), or other health care specialist. Please go to www.naturopathic.org to find a qualified naturopathic doctor (N.D.) in your area to help you.
- Make your physician aware of all the nutritional supplements or herbal products you are currently taking to avoid any negative interactions with any drugs you are taking.
- If you are currently taking a prescription medication, you absolutely must work with your doctor before discontinuing any drug or altering any drug regimen.
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