ScienceDaily (Aug. 26, 2011) — When it comes to improving bone health in postmenopausal women — and people of all ages, actually — a Florida State University researcher has found a simple, proactive solution to help prevent fractures and osteoporosis: eating dried plums.

“Over my career, I have tested numerous fruits, including figs, dates, strawberries and raisins, and none of them come anywhere close to having the effect on bone density that dried plums, or prunes, have,” said Bahram H. Arjmandi, Florida State’s Margaret A. Sitton Professor and chairman of the Department of Nutrition, Food and Exercise Sciences in the College of Human Sciences. “All fruits and vegetables have a positive effect on nutrition, but in terms of bone health, this particular food is exceptional.”

Arjmandi and a group of researchers from Florida State and Oklahoma State University tested two groups of postmenopausal women. Over a 12-month period, the first group, consisting of 55 women, was instructed to consume 100 grams of dried plums (about 10 prunes) each day, while the second — a comparative control group of 45 women — was told to consume 100 grams of dried apples. All of the study’s participants also received daily doses of calcium (500 milligrams) and vitamin D (400 international units).

The group that consumed dried plums had significantly higher bone mineral density in the ulna (one of two long bones in the forearm) and spine, in comparison with the group that ate dried apples. This, according to Arjmandi, was due in part to the ability of dried plums to suppress the rate of bone resorption, or the breakdown of bone, which tends to exceed the rate of new bone growth as people age.

The group’s research, was published in the British Journal of Nutrition. Arjmandi conducted the research with his graduate students Shirin Hooshmand, Sheau C. Chai and Raz L. Saadat of the College of Human Sciences; Dr. Kenneth Brummel-Smith, Florida State’s Charlotte Edwards Maguire Professor and chairman of the Department of Geriatrics in the College of Medicine; and Oklahoma State University statistics Professor Mark E. Payton.

In the United States, about 8 million women have osteoporosis because of the sudden cessation of ovarian hormone production at the onset of menopause. What’s more, about 2 million men also have osteoporosis.

“In the first five to seven postmenopausal years, women are at risk of losing bone at a rate of 3 to 5 percent per year,” Arjmandi said. “However, osteoporosis is not exclusive to women and, indeed, around the age of 65, men start losing bone with the same rapidity as women.”

Arjmandi encourages people who are interested in maintaining or improving their bone health to take note of the extraordinarily positive effect that dried plums have on bone density.

“Don’t wait until you get a fracture or you are diagnosed with osteoporosis and have to have prescribed medicine,” Arjmandi said. “Do something meaningful and practical beforehand. People could start eating two to three dried plums per day and increase gradually to perhaps six to 10 per day. Prunes can be eaten in all forms and can be included in a variety of recipes.”

The U.S. Department of Agriculture funded Arjmandi’s research. The California Dried Plum Board provided the dried plums for the study, as well as some funding to measure markers of oxidative stress.

Story Source:

The above story is reprinted (with editorial adaptations by ScienceDaily staff) from materials provided by Florida State University.

Journal Reference:

1. Shirin Hooshmand, Sheau C. Chai, Raz L. Saadat, Mark E. Payton, Kenneth Brummel-Smith, Bahram H. Arjmandi. Comparative effects of dried plum and dried apple on bone in postmenopausal women. British Journal of Nutrition, 2011; 1 DOI: 10.1017/S000711451100119X

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Vitamin K-2 is now so well documented to reduce coronary heart disease and decrease fracture incidence, that I strongly feel that you must plan to incorporate it in your own antiaging program now. Osteoporosis is widespread and calcium accumulation in aging arteries is universal so I suggest that you take action now!

I have the link for the latest research on K-2 and decreased fracture incidence. The University of MAASTRICT in Holland has an entire department devoted to the exciting research in vitamin K-2. There will be even more important benefits uncovered in the coming years.

Also fractures decrease with higher intakes of vitamin D. Also the list of other nutrients reported to lower fracture incidence but with no mention of the vital role of a SERM-Beta like Purestrol, as found only in H.R.T. Plus. Fractures are a serious threat to health, as we age, and the goal I repeat is to have soft arteries and hard bones when we are 90!

Garry F. Gordon MD,DO,MD(H)
President, Gordon Research Institute

Review Supports Vitamin K’s fracture reducing power
By Stephen Daniells, 20-May-2009

High dose supplements of vitamin K are effective for reducing the risk of fractures in post-menopausal women, according to a new review of the ‘reliable literature’.

Japanese scientists, led by Jun Iwamoto from Keio University School of Medicine in Tokyo, reviewed seven randomized clinical trials for vitamin K1 and K2 in relation to bone health in post-menopausal women.

“Despite the lack of a significant change or the occurrence of only a modest increase in bone mineral density, high-dose vitamin K1 and vitamin K2 supplementation improved indices of bone strength in the femoral neck and reduced the incidence of clinical fractures,” wrote the researchers in Nutrition Research.

“The review of the reliable literature confirmed the effect of vitamin K1 and vitamin K2 supplementation on the skeleton of postmenopausal women mediated by mechanisms other than bone mineral density and bone turnover.”

K definitions
There are two main forms of vitamin K: phylloquinone (vitamin K1) and menaquinones (vitamins K2). K1 is found in green leafy vegetables such as lettuce, broccoli and spinach, and makes up about 90 per cent of the vitamin K in a typical Western diet.

K2 makes up about 10 per cent of consumption and can also be obtained from the diet. Menaquinone-4 (MK-4) can be found in animal meat, while MK-7, MK-8, and MK-9 are found in fermented food products like cheese, and natto is a rich source of MK-7.

Review details
The randomized clinical trials identified by the researchers involved at least 50 subjects, with vitamin K1 doses ranging from 200 micrograms to 5 milligrams per day, or vitamin K2 doses of 45 milligrams per day.

According to the results, found that both forms of the vitamin reduced blood levels of undercarboxylated osteocalcin levels regardless of dose. Osteocalcin is a vitamin K-dependent protein and is essential for the body to utilize calcium in bone tissue. Without adequate vitamin K, the osteocalcin remains inactive, and thus not effective.

“The most important findings in this review are that although supplementation with lower doses of vitamin K may be sufficient to reduce serum ucOC levels, supplementation with higher doses may be required for optimal bone health,” wrote the reviewers.

“However, further study will be necessary to establish the efficacy of vitamin K supplementation as a means of preventing vertebral, nonvertebral, and hip fractures.
“Further research is also needed to elucidate the function of OC and the mechanism by which vitamin K exerts a protective effect against fractures,” they added.

Source: Nutrition Research
Volume 29, Issue 4, Pages 221-228
“High-dose vitamin K supplementation reduces fracture incidence in postmenopausal women: a review of the literature”
Authors: Jun Iwamoto, Yoshihiro Sato, Tsuyoshi Takeda, Hideo Matsumoto

#2: From: LymeAngl@aol.com

Hip Fractures Soar When Hormone Therapy Stops Fran Lowry

October 12, 2010 (Toronto, Canada) — Women who discontinue postmenopausal hormone therapy (HT) have a significantly increased risk for hip fracture, and the protective effect of HT disappears 2 years after cessation, according to new research presented here at the North American Menopause Society 21st Annual Meeting.

These findings have huge public health implications, especially as there is an approximate 25% increase in mortality after hip fracture, Roksana Karim, MBBS, PhD, from the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, said.

“There was a huge drop in the use of [HT] after the publication of the initial Women’s Health Initiative report came out in mid-2002. Millions of women all over the world suddenly stopped taking their hormones,” Dr. Karim toldMedscape Medical News. “HT is one of the best medications that has been proven to protect from fracture, so we were wondering what happened to these women after they abruptly stopped their HT, as there are little data describing the effects of HT cessation on hip fracture incidence in the general population.”

In this longitudinal observational study, Dr. Karim and her team assessed 80,955 postmenopausal women aged 60 years and older who were enrolled in the Southern California Kaiser Permanente health management organization from July 2002 through December 2008 after the Women’s Health Initiative report of June 2002.

Data on the use of HT, antiosteoporotic medication, and occurrence of hip fracture were obtained from electronic medical records. These records showed that dual energy X-ray absorptiometry scans were performed on 54,209 of these women once during this period.
The average age of the women was 68.8 years, slightly more than half (54%) were white, and the average body mass index was 27 kg/m2.

After 6.5 years of follow-up, women who discontinued HT were at a 55% greater risk for hip fracture compared with those who continued using HT (hazard ratio [HR], 1.55; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.36 – 1.77).

The risk for hip fracture increased as early as 2 years after the women stopped taking hormones (HR, 1.52; 95% CI, 1.26 – 1.84) and remained even after adjusting for factors considered protective against fracture, including obesity and the use of bisphosphonates and other antiosteoporotic medication.

Hip fracture risk increased with longer duration of cessation (P for trend < .0001), and bone mineral density likewise decreased with longer duration of hormone cessation.

“In all, 1412 women who had stopped [HT] had hip fractures during the follow-up period, even though they were still taking bisphosphonates,” Dr. Karim reported.

“This is one of the first studies studying these women and looking at this effect,” she commented to Medscape Medical News. “I would like more studies like this to confirm our finding, and the ultimate implication would be to reconsider the use of [HT]. Women are making decisions to stop hormones based on [Women's Health Initiative] findings, which are basically based on cardiovascular and other outcomes. But hormones are beneficial for hip fracture.”

She added that she and her team are currently in the process of looking at mortality rates after hip fracture in these women.

“This study reinforces something that is very important for people to keep in mind — that there is a very positive effect of estrogen on bone,” Steven R. Goldstein, MD, professor of obstetrics and gynecology at New York University Langone School of Medicine in New York City, and current president of the North American Menopause Society, said in an interview with Medscape Medical News.

“Estrogen is probably as good a bone drug as anything else that you can be on, and this study underscores that fact. It also underscores the fact that, unlike some of the bisphosphonates that hang around for 6, 10, 19 years, estrogen doesn’t hang around. Very soon after you discontinue it, its effects in bone go away. I think that’s an important message,” he said.

Whether or not a woman chooses to take HT will be a matter for each individual woman to decide, he added. “While you take estrogen or while you make estrogen, there’s a protective effect on your bones. When you withdraw that estrogen you are going to lose bone at a fairly predictable rate.”

If bone loss is the only consideration, there are other nonestrogen agents that will reverse the tide, he said.

“Most middle-of-the-road clinicians, myself included…believe in the lowest effective dose for the shortest period of time possible, usually for the treatment of symptoms. The question is, for the woman who is totally asymptomatic, has no hot flashes, no vasomotor symptoms at night, not waking up at night, perhaps using a local vaginal preparation in her vagina, can you justify giving her systemic [HT] simply for bone protection?”

The answer might be yes for a very thin woman at very high risk for hip fracture, Dr. Goldstein said. “You’re going to have to take each woman on a case-by-case basis.”

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-

Breaking Bones with Medications

It is being called “Frozen bone.” The meds being taken to strengthen bones
may actually be shutting down both the resorption AND building of new
bone…

Listen to this NBC news report:
National Rehabilitation Hospital rheumatologist Dr. Robert Bunning

http://www.wcsh6.com/video/default.aspx?bctid=67266089001

The post “Sticks and Stone and …. meds may break my bones.” appeared first on WeeksMD.

La Jolla, CA: A diabetic drug that has been linked to heart attack, heart failure, stroke and bone fractures in women, has today been slammed yet again with new research on the role Avandia plays within the context of increased risk for osteoporosis.

The findings were announced yesterday.

GlaxoSmithKline, the manufacturer of Avandia, has already admitted that Avandia does contribute to bone fractures in women. However, the latest research goes further in understanding the issue, just what is happening to those brittle bones, and what it is that’s making them brittle in the first place.

Initially, it was thought that rosiglitazone, the generic term for the drug that is marketed as Avandia, was serving as a governor to the bone-building process. In other words, as bones evolve in the human body (much like skin), it was originally thought that Avandia somehow contributed towards an inability to effectively regenerate bone lost in the natural regenerative process.

However, this latest conclusion—arrived at quite by accident—reveals that rosiglitazone actually contributes to bones loss over long treatment periods. Rather then prevent bone from regenerating, Avandia contributes to actual bone loss.

The finding leads to “a better understanding of the challenges associated with long-term treatment of patients with Type II diabetes,” according to Ronald M. Evans of the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in La Jolla, Calif., lead author of the report.

Researchers were conducting studies on diabetic mice, when they stumbled upon their surprising conclusion. Their findings offer hope that this aspect of Avandia as a contributor to bone loss could be further studied and isolated and, one day, ‘dialed-out’ of a future generation of drugs dedicated to the treatment of Type 2 Diabetes.

The Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and the National Institutes of Health funded the research. The findings appeared in this week’s online issue of Nature Medicine.

Researchers found that rosiglitazone—Avandia—stimulates the cells that break down bone in the body, for future regeneration. Osteoporosis occurs when the body loses more bone that it has the capacity to regenerate. Osteoporosis is of particular concern to older women, and this latest research suggests that Avandia should not be prescribed to patients with a history of osteoporosis.

Further, for Avandia patients who also suffer from chronic osteoporosis, there is now the possibility of a contributing cause to the bone loss.

It may not just be from aging. Avandia may be helping it along.

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Vitamin K May Play a Role in Hip Fracture Incidence in Japanese Population

By Sarah Madden, April 14th, 2008, abstracted from “Association of hip fracture incidence and intake of calcium, magnesium, vitamin D, and vitamin K”, Journal of European Epidemiology, April 1, 2008

Hip fractures are a common problem among the ever-aging US population1.  Almost all hip fractures in adults 65 years and older are caused by falls1.  In 2003, over 300 000 hospitalization visits occurred due to hip fractures and it is estimated that this number will surpass 500 000 by 2040, however this is most likely reflective of the aging population.  Falls among older individuals, 65 years and older, is the leading cause of death from injury in this population2.  The estimated cost of falls in older individuals was over $19 billion in the year 20003. Calcium is the most studied nutrient in association to bone health and is well known for this role among the public and scientific community4.  Vitamin D and magnesium are known to play roles in calcium and bone metabolism, however the mechanisms behind these roles may not be well understood(4, 5).  Recently, vitamin K has been acquiring attention for its possible role in bone maintenance and health6.  Vitamin K is a fat soluble vitamin that has been traditionally acknowledged for its role in blood clotting yet is now receiving attention for its function in bone metabolism4.  There are 2 forms of vitamin K, K1 and K2.  K1 is present in higher plants and algae and K2 is produced by commonly found bacteria.  It is believed that K2 plays a larger role in bone metabolism than K14. A survey-based study conducted in the Japanese population assessed hip fracture incidence with intakes of vitamin D, calcium, magnesium and vitamin K4.  The country was categorized into 12 geographical areas.  There were significant correlations found for intakes of all nutrients and hip fracture incidence, however vitamin K demonstrated the strongest correlations for both men and women after adjusting for age.  A linear relationship was observed in relation to vitamin K consumption and hip break scores.   In the eastern areas of Japan, where vitamin K is consumed in higher concentrations, lower hip break scores were recorded as opposed to the western areas where lower vitamin K was consumed and higher hip break scores were observed.  In addition, the same observation was noted to natto consumption and lower hip break scores.  Natto is a term used for fermented soybeans and it is high in vitamin K.  These observations demonstrate a possible role of vitamin K in relation to bone maintenance4.  The authors note that the Japanese population has very diverse eating habits ranging over different geographical patterns.  This is important to note because observations were seen with respect to vitamin K intake and hip break scores despite different dietary habits.   The data presented is observational and as a result no cause and effect relationship may be determined.  Future studies should directly look for causal relationships and possible mechanisms attributing the role of vitamin K to bone maintenance.  Furthermore, intakes of vitamin K in elderly populations should be evaluated to optimize bone health.  Older individuals may need special attention with respect to this nutrient, therefore addressing this need may be a possible way to address the problems related to hip fractures in this population. Sarah Madden is an MSc Candidate, in the Department of Human Health and Nutritional Sciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON

References:
1  Department of Health and Human Services; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  Hip Fractures Among Older Adults.  http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/factsheets/adulthipfx.htm
2  Department of Health and Human Services; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  Falls Have Become the Leading Cause of Injury Deaths for Seniors 3  http://www.cdc.gov/od/oc/media/pressrel/r061116.htm?s_cid=mediarel_r061116_x
3.  Department of Health and Human Services; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  Cost of Falls Among Older Adults 4  http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/factsheets/fallcost.htm
4.  Yaegashi Y, Onoda T, Tanno K, Kuribayashi T, Sakata K & Orimo H.  Association of hip fracture incidence and intake of calcium, magnesium, vitamin D, and vitamin K.  European Journal of Epidemiology.  2008; 23: 219-233
5  Dawson-Hughes B & Bischoff-Ferrari HA.  Therapy of Osteoporosis With Calcium and Vitamin D.  Journal of Bone and Mineral Research.  2007; 22(S#2)
6  Bolton-Smith C, McMurdo MET, Paterson CR, Mole PA, Harvey JM, Fenton ST, Prynne CJ, Mishra GD,& Shearer MJ.  Two-Year Randomized Controlled Trial of Vitamin K1 (Phylloquinone) and Vitamin D3 Plus Calcium on the Bone Health of Older Women

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“I’m 5 feet 4 inches short” said Mrs. H. as I was preparing to measure her height. “Short?” I queried? “Well,” she sighed, “I used to be 6 feet tall fifteen years ago”. What happened to Mrs. H? The same thing that happens to 1/3rd of American women: Her spinal bones demineralized over time and collapsed into a dense “Dowager’s hump” which clung like a monkey upon her once swan-like neck. Long ago, in her teens, Mrs. H. was a fashion model in Paris. Now, although her eyes still sparkle, they are rarely seen – banished, as it were, by poor posture to a perpetual downward gaze. Only with great effort and pain can she straighten her neck in order to see the world around her.

What happened? Bone, after all, is stronger than cast iron in resisting compression and nimble enough to respond to stress by growing into whatever shape best meets the demands of the owner (Wolff’s Law). What happened is osteoporosis.

Remember Snow White’s step-mother, the evil Queen? Remember what her magic potion did to her beauty? It turned her from a wickedly lovely woman with regal carriage into a bent over hag who could only look up by turning her neck to the side (which, when you are bent over, is up). The tragedy of osteoporosis is best pictured by the hideous transformation rendered by her magic potion.

What is today’s magic potion that destroys the bones of millions of American women? Why do industrialized countries have excessive osteoporosis while under-developed nations fare much better? What causes 1.2 million hip and joint fractures per year and cost $1.6 billion in medical costs and untold personal suffering? How does this epidemic ravage 1/3 of American women? The answer is very slowly. Daily consumption of our nutritionally deficient and toxic diet is our magic potion: puff by cigarette puff, sip by cocktail sip, latte by latte, potato by couch potato and lick by ice cream lick we demineralize and crumble.

Who is at risk? Look around you. As a rule, female bone mass decelerates gradually after age 35 but then accelerates dramatically during the 8-10 years surrounding menopause.

How does it happens? Simply speaking, “porous bone” results from demineralization. Hence the common idea that calcium deficiency is the primary problem. In fact, the issue is not so simple. More than a deficiency of calcium, osteoporosis is a disorganization of bone structure resulting from irregular collagen matrix. Bone is composed of two dissimilar substances, collagen, a fibrous protein “net” upon which the second substance, calcium phosphate crystals, precipitate. The way dew collects on a spider’s web or ice on a tree bough, crystals of calcium deposit upon the flexible collagen imparting rigidity and strength.

How is osteoporosis treated? The conventional therapy for osteoporosis involves hormonal therapy (estrogen, progesterone and parathyroid) and calcium therapy in combination with life-style changes including weight-bearing exercise and stopping tobacco and alcohol. Estrogen prevents bone loss while progesterone and calcium (if appropriately administered) restore lost bone. However, women are rightfully anxious about hormone replacement therapy because of the well-publicized risk of endometrial cancer. They wonder about the cure being worse than the disease. Calcium research, in turn, is surprisingly inconclusive as represented by a number of studies where calcium depletion was present in only 25% of osteoporotic women and calcium supplementation had no effect on the other 75%. This troubling statistic tells us more about the importance of using absorbable minerals (calcium chelate is absorbed, calcium carbonate is not) rather than questioning whether calcium is essential for bone health.

The scientific foundation for a nutritional approach to treatment of osteoporosis has been solidly laid down.

Bone health depends on a lot more than calcium though. After all, bone is one of the most metabolically active organs in the human body and demands therefore a broad variety of nutrients. At present, peer-reviewed scientific studies demonstrate that women concerned with osteoporosis need to take absorbable amounts of the following nutrients: vitamins B6, C, D, K, folic acid, magnesium, calcium, silicon and copper. Coincidentally, women need to avoid foods that deplete their mineral stores such as carbonated beverages, alcohol, tobacco, sugar and antacids (including dairy and chocolate, to name a popular duet).

Let’s look at these nutrients.

Vitamin K is essential for bone formation, remodeling and repair. Vitamin K synthesizes osteoclastin which is the protein matrix upon which calcium crystallizes. One of the problems of inappropriate use of antibiotics is that antibiotics destroy vitamin K producing bacteria. Tests on rats with vitamin K deficiency show increased urinary calcium excretion (i.e. bone loss) while the converse is true: Adding K accelerates healing in experimental fractures. Where do we get Vitamin K? Not (enough) in our diet. We need to supplement.

Vitamin D is required for intestinal calcium absorption and thereby reduces bone loss. Who needs vitamin D? You do if you live in the great Northwet where sunlight exposure is, to say the least, inadequate. Sunlight activates vitamin D and without sunlight, bone loss results. Rickets was first discovered and understood in Switzerland where the steep mountains and the deep valleys created two populations of children: those who lived on the sunny side and those who lived in the shade. The kids that lived in shade developed rickets and the kids who frolicked on the sunny side of life did not.

In addition to sunlight, vitamin D needs magnesium, zinc and boron to be activated. Boron reduces urine calcium excretion and increases serum estrogen. Magnesium is essential because it activates the enzyme alkaline phosphatase, which is involved in forming new calcium crystals. Where do we get magnesium zinc and boron? Not from our diet anymore. According to epidemiological date, 85% of American women consume less than the RDA for magnesium, 68% of adults eat less than 2/3 of the RDA for zinc and boron is practically absent from our soils and therefore our foods. That spells: “Supplement”.

Manganese is required for bone mineralization and to synthesize connective tissue in cartilage and bone. Blood manganese levels of osteoporotic women are less than 25% of that of controls. Silica imparts a healthy flexibility to bone whereas fluoride makes bones dense but dangerously brittle and is therefore no longer recommended. Copper prevents bone loss by supporting the activity of an enzyme lysyl oxidase which strengthens the collagen matrix. It won’t surprise you by now to learn that the typical American diet contains only 50% of the RDA for copper. Where do we get manganese, silica and copper? You guessed it. High quality nutritional supplements.

Homocysteine, a normal but toxic metabolite of methionine (a healthy amino acid) destroys bone. Folic acid rescues bone by preventing methionine-induced rise in serum homocysteine. Menopause is associated with an increased requirement for folic acid which, if unmet, may result in elevation of serum homocysteine and therefore osteoporosis. Where do we get folic acid? Green leafy vegetables and, yup, high quality sonic dehydrated supplements.

Vitamin B6 is essential for bone health because it is required for enzymatic cross-linking of collagen strands. That means it reinforces the net upon which calcium grows and forms bones. Vitamin B6 also breaks down and destroys homocysteine, a metabolite of methionine, which damages bone.

Osteoporosis kills by causing hip fractures in elderly women which in turn result in fat emboli to the brain causing strokes. A fate as horrible as it is preventable. A more exotic way that osteoporosis kills occurred in June 1971 when three cosmonauts aboard the Soyuz 11 succumbed upon returning from a 24 day mission in space. Space osteoporosis can result in 20% depletion of calcium reserves leading to muscle weakness and neurological dysfunction. A message to you couch potatoes out there: Weightless environments inform the body that bones are not needed so calcium is lost in the urine. So if you’re hopelessly addicted to TV, at lest treat your bones to a Buns of Steel workout video periodically. As with everything else, bones operate on a “use-it-or-lose-it” economy.

As with most sound heath practices, the treatment of osteoporosis bears out the truth of the old saying: “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”. So keep your bones healthy in the following three ways: First, replenish your depleted reserves with absorbable chelated minerals and sonic dehydrated vitamins; secondly, detoxify what you are toxin on (tobacco, alcohol, birth control pills, sugar, caffeine and carbonated drinks) and perhaps most importantly of all, thirdly, move those buns of steel. Spring is in the air. Time to frolic or at the very least, if you can’t tear yourself away from the TV, at do increase your exercise behavior by throwing away the TV remote control!

To Your Health!

Bradford S. Weeks, M.D. © 1993

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March 5, 2008 · from http://healthspanlife.wordpress.com/

BONE BOOSTERS? Biphosphonates BNPs NDB 2007

DR. WEEKS’ COMMENT:   I worked in the Mineral Metabolism Unit of Massachusetts General Hospital for 2 years with Dr. Bob Neer (focus: osteoporosis) and Dr. Michael Hollick (focus: vitamin D metabolism) and we looked closely at factors influencing bone health. I have NEVER prescribed Fosamax and have grave concerns about these biphosphate drugs. In a nutshell, they do seem to make bones “denser” but also, and here is the problem, they make them more BRITTLE – think about the piece of chalk your teacher use to use to write on the chalkboard until it…   snapped! 

Density alone is not healty for bones, especially if it comes at the expense of strength and flexibility.  See www.safalab.com for bone healthy targeted nutrients including not only calcium, but more importantly, boron, silica, magesium, B6 and manganese.  And don’t forget to use those bones – get out and walk!

No trials have ever been published showing that biphosphonates do overall good long term for osteoporosis- ie reduce all-cause mortality, and reduce hip fracture, without toxicity. Biphosphonate Osteonecrosis of long bones was already published in 1995, and from 2001 in USA. So their heavy marketing, and prescription like vitamins, causing the epidemic of devastating osteonecrosis, makes the prescribers, manufacturers, dispensers and Regulators – eg the FDA -criminally liable.

Effects of continuing ALENDRONATE after 5 years of treatment:  Fracture Intervention Extension to 10yrs JAMA. 2006 Black, Cummings UCSF.  (Dr. Weeks comment:  it would be interesting to see who funded this research which now seems quite misleading)

In 1099 women re-randomized to alendronate or placebo for a further 5 years (1998-2003):   Continuing alendronate halved only recognized vertebral fracture risk (2.4% vs 5.3% for placebo); their conclusion: “women at very high risk of clinical vertebral fractures may benefit by continuing beyond 5 years”. i.e. no benefit for the far more important hip bones.

But was this a dangerous lie? the 19% Risk of nonvertebral fractures was no different (RR 1 ) between continuing and discontinuing alendronate.  “Susan Ott (JCEM Mar 2005) already questioned bisphosphonate long term safety”

Biphosphonate BPN Jaw OSTEONECROSIS ONJ  is now endemic worldwide:
1st reported in 1994 (Guanabens, Spain- leg stress #s),
2001-03 – USA 63 cases (Ruggiero 2004)
(2002-5 Pozi) Italy- 35 ;
(2003-5 (Abu-Id 2006) Germany 73 cases
2004-5 (Mavrotoki) Australia 158

By July 2006 over 3000 cases of ONJ were reputedly already reported.

“of Odvina‘s 9 cases of spontaneous fractures on alendronate – 5 were mid-femur fractures (2 bilateral same as Toulouse). 6 had delayed or absent fracture healing.

Estrogen alone is anabolic only on bone, uterus, memory, fat – If anything it both builds inner hostility, fattening, inflammation, & wastes collagen ie muscle catabolic – thus doubles incontinence.

The only true anabolics (ie strengthen muscle, melt fat) are
* food incl vita-/minerals incl. vitamin C/D; CoQ10, carnitine,
* Insulin sensitizers – metformin; natural androgens, exercise.

Dach: “ Look at Toulouse Lautrec.. His parents were first cousins… “we are giving women Toulouse Lautrec’s bone disease- the same jaw necrosis, mid-femur fractures, failure of bone healing”,

“But women who sustain fractures on BPNs are told that the fractures are due to the underlying osteoporosis, not the drug”   http://www.drdach.com/wst_page6.htm

The osteonecrosis problem may be 95% with iv BPNs (Urade) – orally BNPs like HRT are absorbed below 10%; but as with oral HRT, the problem may be both total dose absorbed, and total length of exposure –BPNs (given over perhaps a year iv) bind to bone for 10yrs. Fosamax is swallowed for 3-5yrs. Jones & Wilkinson’s (April 2006 NHS review of oral BPN adversity) found that adherence on oral BPNs is only around 50% by 3 years due to adversity – GIT, musculoskeletal, skin…. and when stopped, BMD is maintained for up to 2 yrs due to bound Testosterone (unlike estrogen).

MORE SCIENCE BELOW:

Is there (as there was with tobacco, Premarin & Vioxx) a Bone Mineral Density (BMD) industry  OSTEOPOROSIS FRACTURE DECEPTION?

The OSTEOPOROSIS FRACTURE DECEPTION?

The chief risk factor for fractures is not BMD, osteoporosis,but immobility, falls, inco-ordination, muscular frailty = sarcopenia – which in turn limits exercise, endurance, motivation. By contrast, permanent appropriate TRT in men and T+ E2RT in women can prevent eg the up to 40% bone loss that occurs in 6 months on corticosteroids (Studd 1989), restore up to 26% of lost BMD in critical areas like Ward’s triangle ie (the hipbone’s neck); of the 6 published RCTs that have given testosterone replacement (with or without estrogen) for 1-2 years post menopause, 5 showed that testosterone gave better increase in BMD than estrogen alone. In the 6th and oldest study (Studd 1992) in women both with and without hysterectomy, adding implants of testo 75mg 6mthly to Esto 100mg 6mthly made no difference over esto alone, possibly because the of the supra-physiological esto level attained (mean ~1.9nmol/L per Studd 2006) and the followup of only 1year.

In the 7th trial of only 6 months(2005), no improvement was seen in BMD on either esto alone or on Esto + testo- but it used oral HRT; lean mass increased only on the combination- so these women would have been less prone to falls and fractures. .

On the baker’s dozen of natural supplements, we have seen bone density increasing steadily by 1% a year – slightly faster in spine than hip- over 15 years in eg a severely osteoporotic woman with chronic active rheumatoid arthritis on prednisone.

After osteonecrosis the results with hyperbaric oxygen added to the natural supplements appear useful to justify it’s use to salvage whats left ..

Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) AND FRACTURES:

IN the Women’s Health Initiative, the fracture rate in those with womb was 0.15%pa,
and E+P reduced this by 34% over 5.6yrs in those post hysterectomy ie longer without hormones, the fracture rate was 0.17% and E alone reduced this by 39% ie 60% still had long bone fractures.  No trials have measured fracture rate on TRT in women;
but we never see women on TRT have spontaneous limb fracture.

Only androgen improves muscle strength;HRT suppresses relative androgen levels.
so why must women go without replacement androgen?

Use of platelet-rich plasma in the management of oral biphosphonate-associated osteonecrosis of the jaw: a report of 2 cases.

J Oral Implantol. 2007;33:371-82 Lee CY,

Bisphosphonates (BP) are nonhormonal medications used in the treatment of various bone malignancies and metabolic conditions. Since 2003, there have appeared a significant and growing number of articles in the worldwide medical and dental literature describing the complication of an osteonecrosis of the jaws associated with the intravenous and, most recently, the oral form of BP medication that has been refractory to any definitive form of treatment. The authors have successfully managed 2 patients taking the oral form of BP with adjunctive treatment using platelet-rich plasma (PRP), and in one case with hyperbaric oxygen (HBO). We were able to obtain complete remission in each case, which is defined as resolution of pain and complete closure of exposed bone in the jaws. The purpose of this report is to describe a treatment protocol and the rationale for using PRP and HBO to obtain complete remission of this new pathologic condition.

Hyperbaric oxygen treatment and bisphosphonate-induced osteonecrosis of the jaw: a case series.

J Oral Maxillofac Surg. 2007 Jul;65(7):1275-6. Freiberger JJ, Padilla-Burgos R, Chhoeu AH, Kraft KH, Boneta O, Moon RE, Piantadosi CA.Duke University Medical Center, Divers Alert Network, Durham,.
PURPOSE: Bisphosphonate (BP)-associated osteonecrosis of the jaw (ONJ) is an emerging problem with few therapeutic options. Our pilot study of BP-ONJ investigated a possible role for hyperbaric oxygen (HBO(2)) therapy. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 16 patients, ranging in age from 43 to 78 years, with BP-ONJ were treated with adjunctive HBO(2) between July 2003 and April 2006. Staging was based on the size and number of oral lesions. Clinical response after treatment and at distant follow-up; the odds of remission, stabilization, or relapse; and time to failure analysis were calculated. RESULTS: The median time on BP therapy before appearance of ONJ symptoms was 18 months, and that from symptom onset to HBO(2) therapy was 12 months. Fourteen of 16 patients (87.5%) improved in stage. The size and number of ONJ lesions were decreased after HBO(2) therapy (P < .001 and P = .008, respectively; Wilcoxon signed-rank test). Immediately after HBO(2) therapy, 7 of 16 patients (44%) were in remission and 8 (50%) had stabilized; however, stabilization without remission was sustained in only 2 patients. At follow-up, 10 of the patients (62.5%) were still in remission or had stabilized. The 7 patients who continued on BP treatment during HBO(2) therapy had a shorter time to failure (8.5 months; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 7.1 to 9.8) than those who discontinued the drug (20.1 months; 95% CI = 17.5 to 23.9; P = .006 by the log-rank test). Clinical response was not associated with cancer type or malignancy remission status. CONCLUSIONS: Adjunctive HBO(2) therapy may benefit patients with BP-ONJ; however, the outcome is improved with cessation of BP administration.

Osteonecrosis of the jaws due to bisphosphonate use. A review of 60 cases and treatment proposals.

Am J Otolaryngol. 2007 May-Jun;28(3):158-63.

Magopoulos C, Karakinaris G, Telioudis Z, Vahtsevanos K, Dimitrakopoulos I, Antoniadis K, Delaroudis S. Aristotle University, Thessaloniki, Greece.
PURPOSE: Bisphosphonates are compounds used in the treatment of various metabolic and malignant bone diseases. In the last two and a half years, there has been a striking increased referral of patients with exposed necrotic jawbone, mostly after several teeth extractions. The only clinical feature common in all patients was the use of bisphosphonates in the treatment of bone diseases. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We performed a retrospective multicentric study of 60 patients with necrotic bone lesions of the jaws of various extent from July 2003 to October 2005. The necrotic bone involved the maxilla (37%), the mandible (50%), or both (13%). The bisphosphonate administered was mostly zoledronate. The management of the patients included cessation of bisphosphonate therapy for more than 6 months, long-term antibiotics, hyperbaric oxygen administration in some cases, and various surgical restorative procedures. RESULTS: The implementation of the treatment protocol in 7 patients so far lead to high cure rates, whereas surgical restoration of the defect without previous cessation of bisphosphonate therapy had discouraging results.

CONCLUSIONS: Clinicians and dentists should have in mind this new complication of bisphosphonate administration to identify and treat osteonecrosis of the jaws.

The post Fosamax – not so fast…. appeared first on WeeksMD.

What is it like to be black in America?

*  The white man assumes that there is equality between the

races.

* The black man knows that there is not.

* The white woman believes that the black woman has attained

equal rights.

* The black woman is sicker, fatter, and poorer than her

white sister.

We whites and blacks now share the same opportunities, and

may live on the same streets and work the same jobs. Our

brains work the same, and our blood, muscles, and internal

organs function in like manners. There is one very powerful

difference between the races.

Whites with European backgrounds can tolerate milk and dairy

products. Blacks with African ancestry cannot. With that

difference considered, it would be hazardous for blacks to

consume an amount of dairy equal to whites. It might even be

deadly for blacks to consume greater amounts of milk and

dairy. That is exactly what they are doing.

Ninety-five percent of African-Americans cannot tolerate

lactose. Pizza and ice cream taste delicious on the way into

their bodies. Lactose is a sugar, and most people need the

enzyme (lactase) to break down lactose into glucose and

galactose. Intact, this sugar is broken down in the

intestines by bacteria and the results are gas, bloating,

and intestinal distress.

Casein represents eighty percent of milk protein. This

tenacious glue causes histamine production, the body's

natural defense against an invading antigen. One's

antibodies result in mucus, and plenty of it.

Inner-city school systems like Boston, New York, Detroit,

Chicago, and Los Angeles have very large populations of

African-American students. In New York City, 38 percent of

homeless children and 25 percent of kids in the Bronx

schools have asthma. Got milk?  Got cheese? These kids do,

particularly chocolate milk.

Milk contains powerful hormones. Rates of sexual maturity in

children are astounding 21st century endocrinologists and

behavioral psychologists. A recent study revealed that

eighty percent of nine-year-old African-American girls had

breast development with early sexual maturity.

Children are becoming overweight at an earlier age too. By

eating growth hormones in combination with animal fat, the

body has a way of listening to the signals of those chemical

messengers: Grow!

One out of five children has attention deficit disorder

(ADD). A recent study in the Journal of Autism linked ADD

with a milk protein, casomorphin. This opiate is similar to

morphine, and it can be found in the healthiest milk from

the healthiest cows.

Many children of color live below the poverty level. The

United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) provides free

food and nutritional programs for these kids. In its lack of

wisdom, USDA has chosen milk and dairy products to be the

major components of these kid's diets. These children now

receive free breakfasts of cereal with milk, free lunches of

chocolate with macaroni and cheese or pizza. A subsidized

snack before they go home is more chocolate milk.

Milk buffers gastric pH so that food in the stomach ferments

and putrefies. Kids drink hormones and act irritable. In May

of 1995, the Townsend Medical Letter listed eleven symptoms

from milk consumption including mood swings, depression, and

irratibility.

Milk is slavery to impoverished children. Milk takes away

their ability to learn. Poverty in America translates into a

billion dollar giveaway program. That gift to poor black

children and parents is free cheese and milk.

Add to that the dairy industry's milk mustache campaign.

As African-American women read pro-milk propaganda in

women's magazines, reinforced by milk mustache ads, rates of

breast cancer, osteoporosis, and diabetes soar to become

epidemics.

South African black women eat just 196 milligrams of calcium

per day, yet American women, who are eating 986 milligrams

of calcium daily, experience eleven times the rate of pelvic

fractures as their African sisters.

The consumption of cheese has more than tripled in the past

twenty years from an average of 10 pounds per person each

year to 31 pounds. Combine that with an enormous campaign

that targets African-Americans by hiring athletes, models,

actresses, and celebrities to pose with milk mustaches, and

we find the reason for increased rates of allergies, breast

cancer, osteoporosis, asthma, diabetes, and other ailments

in the African-American community.

Can things be worse for blacks? Unfortunately, the answer is

yes. The latest death statistics confirm that black people

face medical genocide, when it comes to cancer.

Despite new cancer procedures, which include earlier rates

of detection and technologically advanced means of treating

carcinomas, blacks are not keeping up with white survival

rates.

As black people are targeted by dairy industry promotions to

consume more milk and cheese, and by government regulators

to eat what is white in the name of good health, they ingest

increased amounts of powerful hormones.

There are hundreds of millions of different proteins in

nature, and only one hormone that is identical between any

two species. That powerful growth hormone is insulin-like

growth factor, or IGF-I. IGF-I survives digestion and has

been identified as a key factor in cancer's growth. IGF-I is

identical in human and cow.

If you believe that breast feeding "works" to protect

lactoferrins and immunoglobulins from digestion (and benefit

the nursing infant), you must also recognize that milk is a

hormonal delivery system. By drinking cow's milk, one

delivers IGF-I in a bioactive form to the body's cells. When

IGF-I from cow's milk alights upon an existing cancer, it's

the signal to grow. To proliferate. IGF-I has been called a

key factor in the growth and proliferation of every human

cancer.

The latest cancer data have been recently published by the

SEER cancer statistics review and the National Cancer

Institute. For this column, I compare 1980 death rates to

year 2000 death rates. Statistics are per 100,000 of

population.

A cancer takes 8-10 years to grow from one cell to one-

million cells. As a result of increased surveillance and

awareness, cancers are being diagnosed much earlier than

ever before. As a result of increased technologies, cancer

death rates have been reversed among whites. During this

same time frame, blacks have been the target of the dairy

industry and government. Breast cancer death rates for

whites have dropped. Breast cancer rates for blacks have

increased. Prostate cancer death rates for white men have

decreased. The rate for black men has increased by double

digits. The same can be said for colon cancer death rates.

Here are the actual data.

From 1980 until 2000, colon cancer death rates decreased by

a factor of 27.6 percent for white males and 29.6 percent

for white females. Black females experienced only a 7.3

percent decrease, while black males experienced a 6 percent

increase.

From 1980 until 2000, breast cancer death rates decreased by

a factor of 17.6 percent for white women, while breast

cancer rates for black women increased by a factor of 9.1

percent.

From 1980 until 2000, prostate cancer death rates decreased

by a factor of 7.6 percent for white males, while prostate

cancer rates for black males increased by a factor of 11.6

percent.

Lympoma rates for males and females were about equal.

Amazingly, despite increased technologies, lymphoma rates

have soared equally for both races.

While rates of breast, prostate, and colon cancer were

decreasing for white men and women, rates of lymphatic

cancer deaths increased 39 percent for white males and 27.3

percent for white females. Black males suffered an increase

of 31.4 percent, while black female deaths increased by a

factor of 35.5 percent.

An argument for the etiology of these shocking results can

be made for the new genetically engineered bovine growth

hormone. See companion article:

http://www.notmilk.com/lymphoma.html

In October of 1992, Scientific American wrote:

"The National Dairy Board's Slogan, 'Milk. It does a body

good,' sounds a little hollow these days."

More than a decade later, those words have never been more

true.

Robert Cohen, author of:  





MILK A-Z

(201-871-5871)

Executive Director (notmilkman@notmilk.com)

 

The post Dietary Racism appeared first on WeeksMD.

Related commentary:
Harvard Nurse Study 78,000 nurses!
Bad Bones Who gets bone disease?
Boneheads Crippling boneheads

For much more on the subject of calcium visit http://www.notmilk.com/calcium


Robert Cohen
Executive Director
Dairy Education Board
http://www.notmilk.com

The post Calcium – sources and quality appeared first on WeeksMD.