When conventional doctors diagnose a woman as having osteoporosis or osteopenia, they are likely to prescribe so-called bone-building drugs like Fosamax, Reclast, Forteo, Evenity, Tymols or Prolia. The problem with this approach is that bone drugs should be a last resort for most women with bone health concerns, not a first choice. That’s because changes to diet, exercise and lifestyle often yield better results for bone health with zero negative side effects — especially for women who have never experienced a fracture and whose bone loss is simply a product of menopause.  

There is a small percentage of women who will benefit from these drugs as a first line treatment, at least for a short time.  But how do you figure out what you should do? Or what’s best for your mother, your sister or your best friend?  

Let’s get into these factors that determine your best course of action after being told you have a bone health issue — starting with the arguments against relying on medications.

A system that’s weighted toward drugs

Americans take more physician-prescribed drugs than any other country in the world and by a large margin. The average woman over 65 is taking at least 5 prescription drugs and studies show that conventional doctors usually don’t spend much time telling their patients about the real risks and side effects of the drugs they’re prescribing. 

Then there is the fact that quite a few of us get on these medications and never get off them — if we start taking a blood pressure medication when we’re 55, it’s likely we’ll still be on it when we’re 65 or 75, even though none of these drugs were ever tested for long-term use in humans before being approved.

Not only is this an expensive habit — it’s bad for our health. Prescription drugs of any kind — even when taken as directed — kill over 125,000 people a year. That’s almost 9% of all deaths in the United States. Depending on whom you ask, each year between 1.5 and 2.2 million people experience serious adverse drug effects. Yet we have little if any idea about the negative health effects of all those drugs in combination — fatigue, blood pressure problems, lowered immune function and so on.  

Of course, medications offer many benefits too and save many lives. The question however is, “In your case, do the benefits outweigh the risks?”  Doctors call this the risk/benefit ratio and each drug has its own benefits and risks. However, the overall data doesn’t support the idea that using multiple medications in the long-term improves health. For example, in Europe, doctors prescribe far fewer drugs but the population shows better health outcomes, not just in longevity but also in old-age functionality.

Standard osteoporosis treatment goes against U.S. Surgeon General recommendations

Using bone drugs as the first line of osteoporosis treatment illustrates a serious flaw in our medical system, and goes against the recommendations of the U.S. Surgeon General. In the massive report Bone Health and Osteoporosis, the U.S. Surgeon General created an “Osteoporosis Treatment Pyramid” that calls for nutrition, exercise and lifestyle interventions to be the first course of action for treating bone loss and bone drugs as the last choice and only after searching for the causes of the bone weakness. It’s troubling that these guidelines are ignored by doctors who favor going straight to the top of the pyramid and prescribing a bone drug. If doctors aren’t trained in the bottom of the pyramid, they aren’t going to see its value. (See the pyramid for yourself.) 

Usually the best prescription for better bones is exercise, a healthy balanced alkaline diet, the reduction of stress and the creation of emotional resilience.  The experts know this is true and the studies prove it.  In fact, nutrition and weight-bearing exercise are among the universal recommendations in the National Osteoporosis Foundation’s treatment guidelines.  

The factors that tip the scales towards a prescription

As a society, we tend to believe that better health comes through chemistry. Prescription drugs are prescribed at 73.9% of all physician office visits — meaning that just under three in every four encounters with a doctor result in some sort of pharmaceutical preparation as their treatment of choice. 

Short doctor visits

Physicians make the determination that a medication is needed—as well as which medication to choose — based on a very limited amount of time. According to a 2007 study:

• The average doctor’s office visit covers six topics in just over 15 minutes.
• Typically, one of these topics takes up most of the discussion (5 minutes, on average).
• Other topics get only a minute or two for discussion.

Now, suppose you’re seeing your doctor to follow up on the ankle you broke stumbling over a curb—a minor accident but one that led to you being diagnosed with osteoporosis. Your physician will take several minutes to examine your ankle and look at x-rays. How long does that leave you to discuss the fact that you have bone weakening? A minute, perhaps two. Can your doctor cram everything there is to know about bone loss, exercise and nutrition into that visit? Hardly! While he or she might use those fleeting seconds to suggest you supplement with Vitamin D and calcium, it’s more likely given that you’ve already broken a bone that concern about future fractures will prompt a “magic bullet” approach centering around the osteoporosis go-to prescription: bisphosphonate drugs.

By the time your practitioner is writing the script, their time with you is up. There’s no time for questions about side effects, long-term benefits versus risks, or any of the information you might need to make an informed decision about whether this is the right treatment for you. There’s certainly no time to discuss potential options for using nutrition, exercise and other lifestyle changes to help improve your bone health — even though these are well-known for reducing the risk of osteoporotic fractures. 

Lack of training in nutrition

The reality is, a majority of physicians lack any significant training in nutrition, even though most of them recognize its importance. Keep in mind that your mainstream conventional doctor is an “allopathic doctor” which means she/he is trained in the use of drugs, surgery, radiation and chemotherapy to address health symptoms. Most likely this doctor is not trained in nutrition and protocols that would naturally help the body regain balance, bone strength and wellness.

Confusion between bone density and bone weakness

In conventional medicine there persists an overly simplistic understanding of what osteoporosis is and how it develops—and a confusion between bone density and bone weakness, which are not the same thing.

It’s understandable to conclude that the thinner bone gets, the weaker it gets — after all, it’s easier to break a single stick between your hands than it is to break a thick branch, right? But that’s not always true — a thin willow branch will hold up better to being buffeted by a gale-force wind than even a thick oak branch, because it’s flexible and able to bend with the pressure. Similarly, scientific studies have shown that bone quality and structural flexibility, not the total amount or density of bone present, is what most affects your risk of fracture. In many conventional practices, thinner bone is still conflated as weaker bone, and a bone drug is prescribed without further assessment.

“Osteopenia” isn’t a real diagnosis

Decades ago, osteoporosis was diagnosed only when a patient broke a bone without good reason. For example, if a woman bent over to pick something up and fractured a vertebra as shown by x-ray, it demonstrated that her skeleton was greatly weakened, and she received a diagnosis of osteoporosis. This led scientists to wonder whether they could preemptively diagnose osteoporosis by looking at how “dense” the bones were so they could devise a therapy to help avoid these types of fractures. Good intentions, but what happened next made it clear that this was not necessarily well thought out.

Although bone density studies over 35 years document that there is at best a very weak correlation between fractures and bone density, doctors began to equate the two — without thinking about the fact that they’re not necessarily the same thing (as in our oak versus willow example above).

Worse, when a committee of bone researchers in 1994 came up with a descriptive word, osteopenia, to distinguish women whose bone density was considerably lower than what the researchers considered the norm, it was immediately snatched up as an indicator of disease in need of — you guessed it — a drug. Major researchers themselves argued against this approach because there was no evidence that osteopenia actually did lead to osteoporosis, or that “osteopenia” patients benefited sufficiently from increased bone density to make their drug use worthwhile. 

Still, when you get a DEXA and it shows lower bone density, a conventional doctor will likely prescribe a bone drug without doing anything else to assess the strength and flexibility of your bone.

Quantity over quality

And all of this is important because some bone drugs add quantity to bone but reduce quality. Remember, treating the symptom with a drug doesn’t cure the disease — it simply masks the problem.  The “problem masking” in turn often brings with it significant life-damaging side effects. And most physicians don’t mention that these are very powerful medications with a profound impact on the body’s most fundamental processes. Long-term bisphosphonate use produces much denser bones but with a greater presence of microscopic cracks that have the potential to develop into fractures when placed under strain. Denosumab (Prolia) goes even further in interfering with immune factors to prevent the natural process of bone breakdown and renewal: A full 6% of those who use Prolia will develop a spontaneous vertebral fracture after stopping the drug, unless they’re put immediately on a strong bone drug like Reclast to halt bone breakdown.

Profits over health priorities?

Bone drugs are big money makers, with the global osteoporosis drug market currently valued at over $14 billion and projected to rise to nearly 23 billion by 2030. Bisphosphonates account for 31% of bone drug prescriptions, roughly $1.25 billion per year in the United States alone.  It’s no wonder this huge profit opportunity has shaped the very diagnosis of bone health — in ways that have improved sales but not necessarily patient outcomes.  

It’s an unfortunate reality that for the U.S. healthcare system the profit motive has pushed aside consideration of what’s best for individual patients. Over a decade ago, one bioethicist warned that the pharmaceutical industry which funds a majority of clinical trials, “sets up a research agenda guided more by marketing than by clinical considerations. Smart statistical and epidemiological tactics help obtain the desired results. The budget for marketing is by far greater than for research … By contrast, powerful and cheap health-promoting activities … are markedly underutilized: technologies for changing behavior (e.g., cardiac rehabilitation), palliative care, and use of old, effective, and safe drugs — all could benefit from industry’s tools of marketing and quality.”

How much more is this true today?

So who really needs a prescription drug for bone health?

Let’s face the facts: The reason doctors issue so many prescriptions is because that’s what our healthcare system rewards. If you want a different kind of care for yourself, you need to be proactive — ask questions, weigh options and above all, learn about your health by researching the very things your doctor doesn’t have time to discuss with you.

If my stance leads you to believe I’m against bone drugs altogether, you need to know that’s not the case. There are people who have such catastrophic bone loss/bone weakening that it’s appropriate for them to use medications to slow or halt it. These are usually people who have a serious on going health crisis, including patients undergoing cancer treatment, Paget’s disease of bone, those on long-term high-dose prednisone treatment or other situations where bone is eroding rapidly. These are clearly circumstances where strong medications can be beneficial but that’s in addition to supporting bones and overall health with nutrition and life changes. 

What it boils down to is this: If your doctor finds your bone health situation so serious that she wants you to take these very powerful drugs — medications that affect not just bones, but other systems in the body too, then your situation is serious enough to warrant a full osteoporosis medical work-up looking for the causes of bone loss! The case for bone drugs cannot be made on the basis of just one or even two DEXAs. In my opinion, the simple fact that a person is losing bone isn’t reason enough to start someone on a drug. Further tests and considerations are needed. 

My online course, “Osteo Lab Tests: Find Your Hidden Causes” and one of my blogs detail all the tests which should be done when looking into the real causes of excessive bone weakening.

If there is an identifiable underlying condition that is causing an individual to lose a lot of bone rapidly, this should be identified and addressed. 

When there isn’t an identifiable underlying health issue or an identifiable cause of bone loss, it stands to reason that working to support bones naturally is a better course of action. Improving nutrient intake, including optimal intake of Vitamin D, magnesium, Vitamin K, calcium and the other key nutrients for bone health (check out my Better Bones Builder for optimal supplementation), exercising for bone health, and making other lifestyle changes are much more sensible first steps. 

There must be a very compelling reason to resort to bone drugs and only after careful consideration and investigation.  

So that is why I believe your very first question about any medication you’re offered for your bones should be: Is this something I really need to improve my bones? 

You deserve the time it takes to get the right answer. 

The post The controversy over bone drugs appeared first on Women's Health Network.

Strong bones are essential, especially in your 40s and beyond, when bone loss and risk for osteoporosis increase. Maintaining healthy, durable bones as you age is also associated with improved lung function, decreased back pain and even a lower risk of hearing loss. Clearly, bones are a foundational part of full-body health!

If you’re looking for strategies to naturally build up your bones, check out these four simple, science-backed ideas you can put into practice today.

Pack a picnic for your bones

Tomatoes and watermelons are popular picnic ingredients — that your bones love too! Tomatoes and watermelons both contain beneficial amounts of lycopene, a type of carotenoid known for its potent antioxidant effects. Research suggests that a diet rich in carotenoids, including lycopene, is associated with higher bone density. Lycopene in particular has been pinpointed for helping to inhibit bone-degrading cells called osteoclasts.

Tip for tomatoes: Cooking tomatoes can increase the availability of lycopene, so consider incorporating cooked tomatoes or tomato-based sauces into your meals. Looking to supplement with lycopene? It’s included in our Better Bones Builder formula for women at risk for bone loss.

Cut back on alcohol consumption

A glass of wine every now and again is one thing, but excessive drinking can negatively affect bone health and increase the risk of osteoporosis. According to researchers from Baylor University, long-term alcohol consumption can interfere with bone building and replacement of bone tissue, resulting in decreased bone density and increased risk of fracture.

Looking for a refreshing summer drink that skips the alcohol and is good for your bones? Try our recipe for refreshing, delicious Green Agua Fresca that features watermelon and spinach (another nutrient-rich food your bones love).

Engage in weight-bearing exercise

When you walk, run, hop and skip, you are pushing against gravity in order to move. This resistance and impact puts stress on your bones, which then sends a signal to your body to make bone stronger and denser so your skeleton can withstand the stress. Weight-bearing exercises include activities like weightlifting, walking, jogging, dancing or jumping rope — or even carrying groceries! Learn more about choosing the best exercises for your bones.

Increase Vitamin K-2 intake

Want to keep your bones and your heart healthy? Vitamin K-2 is essential for healthy bones because it has the unique capacity to activate proteins that help to keep calcium in bone, but it also helps your heart by keeping calcium out of your arteries. To get these advantages, incorporate Vitamin K-2-rich foods like natto (fermented soy bean), hard cheeses and egg yolks, or opt for an easily utilized Vitamin K-2 supplement. Research suggests that supplementation with K-2 in its menaquinone-7 (MK-7) form may increase bone density, particularly in women.

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Have you noticed jars are harder to open, walking upstairs is more tiring and you can’t throw a baseball as far as you used to? These are signs of normal age-related muscle loss.

After age 30, most people lose as much as 3–8% muscle mass per decade, and this loss accelerates around age 50 for both men and women. By age 80, most women have lost, on average, 50% of the strength in their back muscles, while men have lost 64%. This normal rate of aging muscle loss is strikingly similar to normal aging bone loss, which can cost up to half of the peak bone mass.

And just as with bone, excessive loss of muscle mass and strength is not a normal aspect of aging. Excessive muscle wasting is a pathological disorder known as sarcopenia, a condition that leads to physical disability, poor quality of life, and even death.

The muscle loss cascade of sarcopenia

One 84-year-old woman came to me with substantial kyphosis (bending of the upper spine) and height loss. Yet when we looked at her bone density, she didn’t have any spinal fractures, which is the usual cause of kyphosis. Instead, she had extreme sarcopenia and it was her lack of muscle strength — not bone weakness — that disabled her to the extent that she could no longer rise from a bed or even a chair unaided. The flowchart below shows how this can happen.

The risk of disability is 1.5 to 4.6 times higher in older persons with sarcopenia than in older persons with normal muscle; declining muscle mass is also associated with metabolic abnormalities, obesity, diabetes, hormone decline, reduced cognitive functioning, and cardiovascular disease.

Are you at risk for sarcopenia?

Many factors contribute to the eventual development of sarcopenia manifested as an excessive loss of muscles mass, muscle strength and muscle function. Some authorities estimate that up to 30% of the US population over 60, and 50% of those over 80, could be classified as sarcopenic due to an excessive loss of muscle mass, strength and function. To identify sarcopenia, doctors often use a simple screening questionnaire.

How to maintain — and build — muscle as you age

While sarcopenia indicates an extreme of muscle loss, I bet most of us have experienced a lesser degree of declining muscle strength and wondered what to do about it. Indeed, just as with bone, there’s a great deal you can do to maintain and rebuild muscle as you age — and doing so is a great way to support your bone health too! Go here to learn some great exercises that build muscle and bone. Just like bone, our muscles were designed to last a lifetime — but we need to do our part too.

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Your bones and your body are engaged in an important conversation.

Our skeleton might seem like a silent partner that quietly provides us with a solid framework, a place for muscles to attach, an incubator for red blood cells and a gigantic storehouse for alkaline mineral compounds. In reality, however, our bones are anything but silent. Like text messages pinging back and forth on a smart phone, our bones and our bodies are in constant conversation. What are they talking about?

Bones are the body’s “great communicator”

When your body talks to your bones, it does so through chemical messengers you’re likely familiar with: hormones like estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, growth factors, thyroid and parathyroid hormones, and Vitamin D, among others.  This larger endocrine system regulates the development, maintenance and renewal of bone. Your amazing skeleton listens to these silent chemical messages very carefully — but it not only receives messages, it also sends them out to every other tissue in the body, creating a complex network of information flowing out of the bones.

Why “bone talk” is important to you

Our skeleton is a very complex and intelligent organ directing system-wide essential functions. Much of this bone-derived chat is aimed at regulating whole-body energy metabolism, glucose control and appetite control — areas where bones benefit from being in the driver’s seat because our skeleton needs a great deal of energy to maintain and renew itself on a constant basis. Caring for our bones, we literally help care for the entire body.

Modern science is only beginning to understand the vast field of information and intelligence we identify as our body, and it’s on the brink of linking bone health to the development of diseases like diabetes and obesity. Bringing your awareness to the “wonders of you” enlivens that intelligence and enhances your well-being.
 

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Here’s a look at what’s in my bone-supporting spice rack:

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Some clients come to me wondering about the difference between osteopenia and osteoporosis. Often, they have just been told that their “diagnosis” of osteopenia means they need bone drugs to prevent a life-altering fracture.

I’m not surprised by their confusion, because most physicians are just as confused when it comes to fracture risk. But the evidence is clear: osteoporosis and osteopenia are not the same thing, and their risk of fractures is not the same either. Here is the difference between osteopenia and osteoporosis, in a nutshell: 

Osteoporosis suggests a disease process; osteopenia is a description of lowered bone density.  

When you have a diagnosis of osteoporosis, it means you have an actual disorder that can be seen under a microscope. The word “osteoporosis” means “porous bone,” and a close look at the bones of someone with osteoporosis shows the bones are more like Swiss cheese than the spongy appearance of healthy bone. 

Osteoporosis is not a normal response to aging, but is indicative of  long-term imbalances which culminate in a bone weakening disease process.

Osteopenia, on the other hand, is not a diagnosis. It’s a description. This is a key difference between osteopenia and osteoporosis. The word “osteopenia” means “low bone mass” — and all it’s really doing is stating an observation that your bone mass is lower than that of a woman in her late 20s — someone at the peak of their bone-building and strength.

I’m always tempted to roll my eyes and say “Well, of course!” — because just as you might expect a 55-year-old woman’s hair to be a little grayer than a 25-year-old’s, it’s realistic to expect her bones wouldn’t be as dense as those of a woman 30 years younger. 

Osteoporosis warrants an extensive work-up looking for causes of excessive bone loss. Osteopenia  may or may not be an early warning sign of bone weakening and generally does not trigger the need for a work-up or conventional medical treatment — with some exceptions. 

Since osteoporosis is a disease process with a lot of potential factors, a diagnosis of osteoporosis should initiate a full work-up. 

Osteopenia, however, is not a diagnosis nor a disease and often, in fact, is the result of statistics.  Because bone density testing “T scores” represent a statistical calculation — by statistical definition, 15% of healthy young people will be told they have osteopenia. Most often these are small-boned, light-weight individuals. In these cases having “osteopenia” is simply a product of an individual’s general body type and more a statistical artifact testing bias than anything to do with their actual bone health.

When is osteopenia something to take seriously?

Since women’s peak bone mass occurs in their late 20s, it stands to reason that some amount of bone loss takes place throughout the subsequent decades. Whether or not slipping into “osteopenic” bone density range is a serious concern depends on the individual case. This is where we find the proverbial devil hiding in the details. Here’s how this goes…

At the Center for Better Bones, our developing clinical findings have discovered different “types” of osteopenia — some being more troublesome than others. For now let me mention a few key factors that distinguish a harmless finding of osteopenia from one that may well signal serious bone weakening:

• Finding “osteopenia” in a bone scan becomes concerning if subsequent scans reveal rapid and excessive bone loss, such as more than 2% a year loss during the menopause transition, and more than .05 to 1 % a year loss from 5 years after menopause and onwards.  On-going excessive bone loss signals that one is on the road to osteoporosis.
• Osteopenia found in those whose parent(s) have fractured a hip. A hip fracture could be an early red flag of future bone fragility. It warrants follow-up to find out whether this individual herself is losing bone, and if so, how rapid is the loss.
• Entering menopause with osteopenia is a concern as the average woman loses 10% of her bone mass between the first few years before and the first five years after her last period. Some women lose up to 20% in this transition. Starting the menopause transition with lower than normal bone mass signals the need for a life-supporting, bone-preseving program.
• Anyone with osteopenia who has experienced a low-trauma fracture has documented bone weakness and would do well to take their “osteopenia” seriously by implementing a bone building lifestyle and nutrition program.

To conclude, let me say that the limitations of bone density testing are now clear. Amongst other things, it is now obvious you cannot foretell fracture by bone density alone.

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Science has learned some amazing things about nutrients for bone health and osteoporosis in recent years. The outmoded thinking that says bone nutrition is all about calcium has been shown by research to be an oversimplification at best. Yes, calcium is critical for bone health — but our bones are so much more complex than we ever imagined!

Bones play a number of surprising roles in the body, from regulating blood calcium and blood sugar to storing needed minerals to supporting and protecting the body’s organs and tissues.

Getting the full complement of nutrients for bone health is essential for overall health. But it’s especially important for women in midlife to recognize the value of bone-building nutrients, because that’s when women start to lose bone mass. Perhaps you’ve been diagnosed with osteoporosis or told you have osteopenia and are wondering if there are nutrients for osteoporosis that can help you fend off a fracture. Or perhaps you’ve broken a bone and want to know what nutrients for bone healing can speed your recovery. We’ll look beyond the “usual suspects” and highlight nutrients that support bone health so that whatever you’re looking for — whether it’s nutrition for osteopenia or bone-healing nutrients for osteoporotic fractures — you’ll know what to look for and where to find it.

Table Of Contents:

Calcium

Your body contains more calcium than any other mineral, making up about 2% of your total adult body weight. It’s stored in your bones and teeth, and the skeleton itself is a reserve of calcium. Calcium is vital to maintaining heart rhythm, muscle function, blood clotting and many enzymes, so it’s crucial that you have what you need — and if your body doesn’t get the calcium it needs from food or supplementation, it takes it from your skeleton, which weakens your bones.

Getting enough calcium isn’t as simple as adding more to your diet by eating cheese or yogurt.

Whether you can absorb the calcium in your diet is just as important, if not more important, than eating enough of it. And there are a lot of nutritional factors influencing absorption: for instance, calcium absorption is highly dependent on other nutrients for bone health such as Vitamin D, magnesium and zinc, among others. So having too little of such companion nutrients can affect how much calcium you absorb. As an example, a person with inadequate Vitamin D absorbs 65% less calcium than someone who has adequate Vitamin D (at least 32 ng/ml). Not to mention the fact that without nutrients for bone health like phosphorus, magnesium and Vitamin K, bones are not as strong and flexible.

Magnesium

Magnesium assures the strength and firmness of bones and makes teeth harder. It’s one of the key nutrients needed to ensure calcium is both optimally absorbed and best utilized by the body. It’s also necessary for converting Vitamin D into its active form. What’s more, magnesium is required for over 300 biochemical reactions in the body. It’s found in nuts, leafy greens, beans and, best of all, dark chocolate.

The majority of the body’s reserves (60%) of magnesium are held in the bone, and the bones act as a storage reservoir, transferring magnesium to the blood in times of need.

Vitamin D3

Ranking high on the list of nutrients for bone health, Vitamin D — and specifically the hormone our body produces from Vitamin D — is the most important regulator of calcium absorption. People with low Vitamin D absorb 65% less calcium than those with adequate levels of this vitamin. Vitamin D is one of the few nutrients we make ourselves, simply by exposing skin to sunlight for 10 to 30 minutes a day. It’s an easy vitamin to get if you live in a sunny location — not so easy if you live in a northern state where it’s wintry half the year, which is why people who are housebound or who live in colder climates are encouraged to take supplements. Osteoporotic fractures are much more common in folks with low levels of Vitamin D, though fracture incidence can be dramatically reduced with Vitamin D supplementation.

Low levels of Vitamin D are also linked to the development of numerous diseases, including:

• Cancer
• Heart disease
• Diabetes
• Hypertension
• Depression
• Muscle weakness
• Dementia
• Autoimmune disease (such as MS)

Vitamin K

Emerging research is showing Vitamin K2 as MK-7 (menaquinone-7) to be one of the key nutrients for bone health, specifically for building bone strength and helping to prevent osteoporosis, protecting the heart and even reducing mortality. For example, K2 is involved in preventing fractures in postmenopausal women with osteoporosis. An analysis of the results of 19 different studies focusing on postmenopausal women with osteoporosis showed that Vitamin K2 plays a role in improvement of the vertebral bone mineral density and the prevention of fractures.

Vitamin K2 as MK-7 has also been shown to improve cardiovascular health in healthy postmenopausal women. Finally, in one recent study, participants who increased their Vitamin K1 and K2 dietary intakes over the nearly five-year follow-up period had a 43% and 45% reduced risk of overall mortality respectively compared to those whose intakes were unchanged or reduced. Those with increased Vitamin K2 intakes during follow-up had a 59% lower risk of death from cancer. Vitamin K is most often associated with leafy greens (kale is particularly high in this vitamin) but it’s also found in hard cheeses like manchego or Romano.

Zinc

Zinc helps produce the matrix of collagen protein threads upon which the all-important bone-forming calcium–phosphorus compound is deposited. It’s also necessary for the production of enzymes that degrade and recycle worn-out bits of bone protein. Zinc deficiency is problematic because it prevents full absorption of calcium. Low levels have been closely linked with the development of osteoporosis. Beans, nuts, shellfish and whole grains are good sources of zinc.

Manganese

Manganese is often overlooked among important nutrients for bone health — there’s not even an RDA for the trace element! However, research shows clearly that manganese is a co-factor in the formation of bone cartilage and bone collagen, as well as in bone mineralization.

Manganese deficiency can have serious consequences — it appears to increase bone breakdown while decreasing new bone mineralization — that can lead to osteoporosis. For example, in one study, blood levels of manganese in severely osteoporotic women were found to be just 1/4 those of non-osteoporotic women their same age — and it was the only significantly different variable out of 25 studied. Manganese is found in a lot of different foods — beans, nuts, rice, leafy vegetables, even coffee and tea.

Boron

The benefits of boron for bone health have only recently been discovered. Your body requires boron for proper metabolism and utilization of various bone-building factors, including calcium, magnesium, Vitamin D, estrogen and perhaps testosterone. Overall studies show boron has a mineral-conserving and estrogen-enhancing effect, especially among women with low magnesium intake. Boron is generally found in non-citrus fruits, nuts, grains and leafy greens.

Chromium

As well as keeping insulin activity in the body efficient, chromium may protect bone by promoting the production of collagen by osteoblasts (our bone-building cells) and by moderating bone breakdown (resorption). Chromium may also improve bone health by raising blood levels of the hormone DHEA, which is thought to be important to the preservation of bone density among postmenopausal women. Grapes and grape juice, apples, beef, poultry and broccoli all are good sources of chromium.

Silica

High amounts of silica are found in the strongest body tissues, such as the arteries, tendons, ligaments, connective tissue, collagen, skin, nails, hair and teeth. In terms of its ranking among nutrients for bone health, it was found that bone collagen increases with silica supplementation and that the mineral is involved in strengthening the connective tissue matrix by cross-linking collagen strands. Furthermore, dietary silicon increases the rate of mineralization and high concentrations of silica are found in areas of active bone mineralization. Silica also combines with calcium in bone-building cells. Green beans, bananas, leafy greens and brown rice are all rich in silica.

Copper

Copper is a trace mineral essential to bone health maintenance. Although its role is not fully understood, a copper-containing enzyme called lysyl oxidase is known to help form collagen for bone and connective tissue and contributes to the strength of bone collagen fibrils. Also, copper is an important element of an antioxidant called superoxide dismutase that helps limit bone resorption — perhaps one reason why low levels of copper are associated with the development of osteoporosis. Copper is not common in a lot of foods, but leafy greens, dark chocolate and seafood are good sources.

Potassium

Potassium, along with sodium, helps to maintain critical fluid balance in the body. Potassium also helps bone in the form of alkalizing compounds that neutralize bone-depleting acids — which prevents too much calcium from being excreted in the urine. The prevention of excess calcium loss in the urine can be done through dietary potassium (think bananas, melons, citrus fruits, spinach, broccoli and cucumbers) or supplemental potassium, such as potassium bicarbonate and potassium citrate.

Vitamin C

Vitamin C is an antioxidant that protects bone cells from oxidative damage. Most people know that it’s present in citrus fruits, but you can also get it from tomatoes and tomato juice, peppers, strawberries, brussels sprouts and potatoes. It is essential for bone health in multiple ways:

• Vitamin C helps form collagen. Bone mineral is laid over a protein matrix, collagen, which is the connective tissue of cartilage and bone. It makes up 30% of our bones.
• Vitamin C may stimulate bone-building cells, enhance calcium absorption and promote Vitamin D’s effect on bone metabolism.
• Vitamin C is responsible for the synthesis and optimal function of adrenal steroid hormones, which are vital in bone health. These hormones are especially important during perimenopause and menopause.
• Vitamin C is the most abundant water-soluble antioxidant in the body.
• Vitamin C is a potent anti-inflammatory that decreases bone-damaging immune system pro-inflammatory compounds.
• Vitamin C chaperones toxins stored in bone out of the body.

Vitamin A

Vitamin A plays a significant role in developing osteoblasts, the bone-building cells that lay down new bone. It’s available through a wide range of dietary sources, both animal and vegetable. Vitamin A deficiency inhibits calcium absorption and metabolism, increasing the risk of poor bone growth. In general, low Vitamin A levels are associated with osteoporosis and increased fracture risk. We recommend the retinoid forms of Vitamin A.

Vitamin B6

Vitamin B6 plays an important yet indirect role in bone metabolism in the following ways:

• Vitamin B6 is needed for hydrochloric acid (HCI) production by the stomach which is necessary for calcium absorption.
• Adrenal functioning needs Vitamin B6. Several hormones are then released by the adrenal glands, some of which aid in maintaining proper mineral balance.
• Vitamin B6 is a cofactor in the enzymatic cross-linking of collagen strands. This means that it increases the strength of connective tissue.
• Vitamin B6 plays a role in the breakdown of homocysteine, a metabolite of an amino acid that interferes with collagen cross-linking and can cause defective bone matrix and osteoporosis. It also contributes to the development of heart disease. Vitamin B6 and folic acid work together to prevent a build-up of homocysteine. Fish, chicken, beans, bananas and oats are all good sources of Vitamin B6.

Folic acid/folate (Vitamin B9)

Folate is necessary for the proper processing of homocysteine. Its role is specifically in the detoxification of the metabolite. Vitamin B9’s role in homocysteine regulation is essential for osteoporosis and atherosclerosis prevention. The best sources of folate are leafy green vegetables, broccoli and beans.

Vitamin B12

Another B vitamin that plays a role in the detoxification of homocysteine is Vitamin B12, which is essential for red blood cell production. Osteoblasts need B12 to function. This vitamin is often found in fish or meat products, which makes it problematic for vegans and vegetarians unless they supplement — and because low B12 levels can cause pernicious anemia (low red blood cell count), it’s generally recommended that people who don’t eat meat take supplements.

Research has found that overall deficiency in B12 is linked with osteoporosis.

Fats

Although we Americans are consuming too much fat in our diets, there are certain fats that are important for our health called essential fatty acids.  In fact, our bodies require these fats. Essential fatty acids are not produced by the body and are only obtained through diet or supplementation. They are important for nerve functioning, hormone production, maintenance and function of the brain, and everyday energy production. Essential fatty acids also play a role in bone health. These fats are needed for calcium metabolism and are essential components of all membranes, such as cartilage and bone. EFAs increase calcium absorption from the intestines, regulate and reduce calcium excretion in the urine, and increase calcium deposition in bone. Omega-3 specifically serves as a potent anti-inflammatory to protect bones from cytokine damage.

Protein

Protein promotes intestinal absorption of calcium and serves as a major building block for bone. Protein even makes up about one-third to one-half of our bone. Additionally, it has been found that protein malnutrition weakens bone. The most obvious sources of protein are meat, eggs and dairy, but whole grains, nuts and beans offer vegetable proteins as well.

Bottom line on nutrients for bone health and osteoporosis

Ideally, we would get the optimal supply of supplemental nutrients from the food we eat. But for most of us, that’s just not possible — even when we’re doing our very best to eat well. Plus, most people don’t realize how critical specific nutrients are for the absorption and utilization of other nutrients. Without this synergistic effect, your body can’t absorb certain nutrients and won’t get the benefits.

To get the right amounts of the top nutrients for bone health every day, you may want to use a nutritional supplement in addition to enjoying a healthy diet. When choosing your supplements, go with a medical-grade multivitamin/mineral formulated specifically for bone health, and make sure it contains balanced, therapeutic levels of these nutrients in their most bioavailable forms.

Our exclusive Better Bones Builder is formulated with ideal amounts of Vitamin D, calcium and magnesium and all other essential bone-building vitamins and minerals at therapeutic levels, along with nutrients to optimize absorption and bone-building support.

The post Best nutrients for bone health, osteoporosis and osteopenia appeared first on Women's Health Network.

I always look forward to new research that delves into different ways to use foods to strengthen bones. It’s fascinating how foods can literally be a make or break factor in the body’s ability to replenish important bone-building nutrients and provide other compounds that protect and nurture our bones.

Remember, our bodies are capable of building bone strength if we give them the consistent support they need. The first step in using food to build stronger bone is to follow an alkaline diet. Next, you want to fill that alkaline diet with a rich array of true “super foods” for bone.

The following choices can be translated into an array of tasty meals and snacks that support bone health.

Table Of Contents:

1. Blueberries may help prevent osteoporosis in postmenopausal women
2. Tomatoes reduce bone-damaging oxidative stress
3. Prunes help build spinal bone density
4. Onions support healthy bone density
5. Broccoli contains high levels of both calcium and Vitamin K
6. Wild caught salmon provides Vitamin D for stronger bones
7. Nuts provide magnesium and phosphorus to help strengthen bones
8. Pumpkins seeds are alkalizing and rich in fracture-lowing omega-3 fats
9. Ginger calms inflammatory cytokines that weaken bone
10. Natto is an excellent source of Vitamin K2 for bone
11. Yogurt lowers risk for osteoporosis
12. Health benefits of black pepper for bone
13. Foods to strengthen bones — the possibilities are endless

Blueberries may help prevent osteoporosis in postmenopausal women

When it comes to foods to strengthen bones, blueberries are a sweet treat for bone health, especially during and after menopause. Using animal models designed to represent menopausal osteoporosis, researchers found that when animals were given blueberries, the blueberry “treatment” was able to prevent the loss of bone mineral density throughout the whole body. Those who were not given blueberries suffered a 6% loss of bone density throughout their bodies.

What’s most interesting to me is that researchers report the mechanism by which blueberries prevent bone loss is different than other fruits studied. Blueberries appear to reduce bone breakdown (resorption) rather than by increasing bone formation as prunes do, for example. Try sprinkling blueberries on top of yogurt for a bone-friendly breakfast, add blueberries to smoothies or simply eat them plain by the handful!

Tomatoes reduce bone-damaging oxidative stress

It has long been noted that people who consume more tomatoes, tomato paste, sauces, juice, and tomato products of all sorts experience a lower fracture rate than those who consume less. The reason why? Researchers believe that it’s due to the high lycopene content in tomatoes. Lycopene is an antioxidant that helps to protect bone from the effects of oxidative damage.

To get the most out of lycopene’s benefits, aim to get 12 to 30 milligrams a day. This  without taking extra supplements? It’s really quite easy if you like tomatoes as I do. Bright red tomatoes — in sauces, soup, juices, or just plain sliced up on the plate—are loaded with lycopene. Oh, and if you don’t like tomatoes, enjoy watermelon, papaya, grapefruit — also good sources of lycopene.

Finally, I already hear this question a lot, “But aren’t tomatoes are acid-forming?” True, tomatoes are slightly acid-forming, but among foods to strengthen bones, the benefits of tomatoes outweigh any small acid contribution, which can be easily buffered with other alkaline foods you eat.

Prunes help build spinal bone density

Among foods to strengthen bones, prunes (dried plums) deserve special recognition. Prunes contain a profile of nutrients that may benefit bone mineral density by enhancing bone formation and slowing bone loss, especially in women identified as having osteopenia. In one of the main studies on prunes and bone formation, researchers ran a 6-month trial comprising 48 women who were identified as having osteopenia. In this group, 16 participants ate 6 prunes daily, 16 others ate 9-10 prunes, and the remaining 16 was a control group and ate dried apples instead.

In the apple-eating control group, BMD stayed unchanged or decreased. But in both groups of women who ate prunes, spine bone density increased, while forearm and hip BMD remained the same. Those who ate 9-10 prunes had a slightly greater increase in vertebral BMD than the 6 daily prunes group, but the difference between the two groups wasn’t significant.

Based on these findings, the researchers concluded that the lower prune intake — 6 prunes — was adequate for most women to get the dried fruit’s benefits.

Onions support healthy bone density

Several recent studies have shown onions are a top crop when it comes to supporting bone density.

For example, one study showed that a group of women 50 years or older who ate onions every day had a 5% greater overall bone density than those who ate onions once a month or less. And — older women who consume onions most frequently may decrease their risk of hip fracture by more than 20% versus those who never consume onions! What’s the secret? Onions are high in quercetin, which appears to have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.

Here’s a tip to get the most out of your onions: Many of the phytonutrients in onions are found in the outer layers, so try not to peel off extra layers when you remove the onion skin.

Broccoli contains high levels of both calcium and Vitamin K

Broccoli is a bone superfood chock full of so many key nutrients for bone health and prevention of osteoporosis. Along with calcium and Vitamin K, broccoli is also full of other nutrients like magnesium, zinc and phosphorous.

Not a broccoli fan? Don’t remove it from your list of foods to strengthen bones! Instead, try broccoli rabe, a brassica family cousin of broccoli. The nutrient content is virtually the same, but broccoli rabe’s florets are much smaller than those of broccoli and its stems are more slender, making it easier and more enjoyable for some broccoli naysayers to eat.

Wild caught salmon provides Vitamin D for stronger bones

You can get Vitamin D from sunshine and supplementation, and the sea! Fatty fish like wild caught salmon and tuna provide the diet with a good food source for Vitamin D, the fat soluble vitamin that plays a key role in bone growth and remodeling. Specifically, one of the things it does is it helps the gut absorb calcium. Nearly 50 percent of adults in the U.S. are deficient in Vitamin D, largely because of lack of direct sunlight for a large chunk of the year and our indoor lifestyles.

Wild caught salmon is among the best food sources of Vitamin D. An average 3.5-ounce serving provides 988 IU of Vitamin D! Even a small, 3.25-ounce can of salmon contains about 600 IU of Vitamin D.

Nuts provide magnesium and phosphorus to help strengthen bones

Nuts are rich in the essential bone-building minerals magnesium and phosphorus. Magnesium is needed to help the body absorb and retain calcium in the bones. Phosphorus is a key mineral for bone strength — almost 85 percent of the phosphorus in your body can be found in your bones and teeth.

Almonds are a good source for magnesium and phosphorous. Other nut varieties that deliver these bone-building minerals include walnuts, peanuts, and pecans.

Pumpkins seeds are alkalizing and rich in fracture-lowing omega-3 fats

Following an alkaline diet to improve your body’s internal pH balance? Make it a habit to eat pumpkin and pumpkin seeds — not just in the fall, but year round. The flesh of pumpkin itself is very nutrient-dense, containing substantial amounts of important bone-building minerals such as potassium, magnesium and phosphorus.

Pumpkin seeds are high in plant-based omega-3 fat (alpha linolenic acid), which the body converts into the more essential omega-3 fats known as EPA and DHA. These omega-3 fats are highly anti-inflammatory and women with higher blood levels of these precious fats have been shown to have lower rates of hip fracture.

Ginger calms inflammatory cytokines that weaken bone

Ginger root contains anti-inflammatory compounds that can reduce pain, swelling and tissue damage. Unwanted inflammatory cytokines weaken bone and contributes to arthritis. Ginger also enhances digestion, allowing your body to better absorb important bone-building nutrients in the foods you eat. (Strong digestion and assimilation is key to optimum bone health.)

Ginger also aids the body’s ability through its alkalizing actions and by its contribution to the production of glutathione, our most important inner-cellular antioxidant.

Natto is an excellent source of Vitamin K2 for bone

Natto is a form of fermented soybean and an excellent source of the MK-7 form of Vitamin K2, which is so important for bone health and our cardiovascular health too. Natto is a common food in Japan and other Asian countries. It’s sticky, stringy texture isn’t for everyone! Alternatives for Vitamin K2 include gouda cheese and fermented vegetables like sauerkraut and seaweed.

Yogurt lowers risk for osteoporosis

In a large Irish study of almost 2000 women and men, one serving of yogurt daily was linked to a substantially lower risk of osteoporosis and osteopenia. The bone-strengthening effect of yogurt was not seen in people who drank milk or ate cheese — it was the yogurt, specifically, not any dairy product. This supports the suggestion that yogurt’s bone-building punch lies in its contribution of probiotics to our all-important gut microbiome.

Now this doesn’t mean eating multiple servings of yogurt daily will eliminate your risk osteopenia or osteoporosis. But it does support the idea that nutrient-dense foods, like a low-sugar, high probiotic yogurt, benefit bone by delivering calcium, protein, phosphorus, potassium and beneficial pro-biotic bacteria.

Health benefits of black pepper for bone

The key nutrients for bone health won’t do you much good if they can’t get from your food into your system—and this is where something as simple as sprinkling a little pepper on your supper can offer you surprising nutritional benefits.

Piperine, a natural compound found in pepper, appears to increase the body’s ability to absorb and use many important bone-supporting nutrients, including vitamins A, C, D, E, and K, the B vitamins, minerals such as calcium, potassium, and magnesium (among others), and various amino acids. Without piperine, these nutrients are at greater risk for being destroyed in the gut or poorly absorbed. Piperine also contains anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties that are protective for bone.

Foods to strengthen bones — the possibilities are endless

After reading through this mouthwatering list, who wants to figure out what’s for dinner? I’m thinking wild caught salmon dusted with black pepper and broiled with a sprinkling of crushed pumpkin seeds, served with a tangy yogurt dill sauce, a side of sautéed broccoli rabe topped with minced onion, and maybe a cup of ginger tea and fresh blueberries with unsweetened whipped cream for dessert.

Now that’s a meal that is delicious and good for your bones! Pair nutritious alkalizing foods with exercise and quality supplementation and you’re on your way to stronger bones for life.

The post What are the best foods to strengthen bones and boost bone healing for women? appeared first on Women's Health Network.

1. What is the alkaline diet?
2. What pH means to your health
3. How bones help maintain pH balance
4. Is your diet acid-forming or alkaline-forming?
5. What are problems with an acid-forming diet?
6. How to start an alkaline diet?
7. Alkaline diet plan: Sample day

What is the alkaline diet?

What pH means to your health

How bones help maintain pH balance

1. They give our bones strength.
2. They maintain a reserve for pH regulation of the blood and other bodily fluids.

Is your diet acid-forming or alkaline-forming?

• Alkaline-forming foods include nearly all vegetables and fruits, many nuts and seeds, and spices. See our chart of alkaline-forming foods.
• For a full list of acid-forming and alkaline-forming foods, check out our Acid-Alkaline Food Guide.

What are problems with an acid-forming diet?

Do you have signs of an “acidic” diet?

• Weight gain
• Nonspecific aches and pains, especially in the bones and joints
• Acid reflux or heartburn
• Poor digestion, irritable bowel, intestinal cramping
• Fatigue, feeling of being “run-down”
• Muscle weakness/loss of muscle
• Urinary tract problems
• Receding gums
• Kidney stones
• Bone loss
• Skin problems
• Low energy

How to start an alkaline diet ?

Here are some general guidelines for eating an alkaline diet:

• Focus on eating whole foods, like vegetables, root crops, fruits, nuts, seeds, spices, whole grains and beans (especially lentils).
• Drink alkalizing beverages such as spring water and ginger root or green tea, water with the juice of a whole lemon or lime.
• Eat smaller amounts of essential fats, meat, fish, pasta and other grains.
• Eliminate processed and artificial foods, caffeine, white sugar and white flour.
• Don’t be afraid to use real butter, ghee and full-fat milk (if you use dairy).
• Dress salads or cook with high-quality fats such as cold-pressed virgin olive oil, coconut oil and avocado oil.

Alkaline diet plan: Sample day

The post Alkaline diet for bone health and osteoporosis — the beginner’s guide appeared first on Women's Health Network.

When your doctor tells you that you have osteopenia, it can be scary. But a major reason why that’s true is that conventional medicine tends to leave unanswered the basic questions women have — questions like, what is osteopenia? What causes osteopenia? And above all, what is the best treatment for osteopenia?

We’ll explain everything you need to know. But first, you need to understand that the situation you’re in is more complex — and much less frightening — than your doctor has probably explained.

Table Of Contents:

1. So, what is osteopenia?
2. Osteopenia vs osteoporosis
3. 4 questions to ask yourself when you have osteopenia
4. You’ve been told that you have osteopenia. Where do you start?
5. What do your bones need to stay strong?
6. You are invited to empower yourself!

So, what is osteopenia?

First, a definition. In the world of women’s bone health, the word osteopenia simply means “less bone” — it’s a scientific term that means that a person’s bones are thinner or less dense than might be expected.

Osteopenia is not, and was never meant to be, a true diagnosis, nor is it a disease. Osteopenia is simply a way to describe a state of relatively low bone mass. “Osteopenia” as we know it is a term that osteoporosis researchers redefined in 1992 to classify a person whose bone density was somewhat lower than the “normal” bone density.

And what’s meant by normal?

Because bones reach their maximum density and growth, on average, when we’re in our early 20s, conventional medicine holds that as we age, the best way to tell if bones are staying strong is to see if they’ve maintained all or most of the density that they had when you were a 21-year-old woman. So the standard practice is to take the bone density of the “average” 21-year-old and use that as a standard for comparing the status of your bone density.

Now, it’s expected that you’ll lose some bone density as you get older — but lose too much, the conventional thinking goes, and you’re at risk for osteoporosis. Thus, if your bone density strays too far from the standard, you’ll be told you have osteopenia — which puts you, according to this thinking, at higher risk of osteoporosis and fractures, and thus requires some sort of active treatment. The treatment option usually involves a drug that’s intended to increase your bone density as a way of preventing fractures.

Sounds simple, right? But unfortunately, none of this is quite true. First, let’s keep in mind that comparing anyone to an “average” 21-year-old woman is problematic for a lot of reasons — the key one being that people come in all sizes. This means women who are smaller in stature or who are very slender may have “thinner-than-normal” bones (osteopenia) when compared to that average, but that doesn’t mean anything because her bone mass is normal for her.

And second, there are a lot of reasons why it’s not likely that you’ll have the same bone density you had at 21 — but that fact doesn’t mean your bones are growing weaker. Science is actually quite clear that osteopenia alone is not a predictor of osteoporosis, nor can it predict whether you’ll have a bone fracture. Osteopenia has no symptoms, and many women may have osteopenia for most or all of their lives and never even realize it!

And that “osteopenia medication” your doctor may be recommending? You need to know  there’s a lot of controversy surrounding using bone drugs at all, and especially when the “diagnosis” is osteopenia:

1. Prescription medications are not what the Surgeon General recommends as a first step in treating bone thinning and fragility.
2. Every bone drug on the market has side effects, some of them fairly serious, especially in long-term use — and long-term use is what women with osteopenia are facing.
3. There’s growing, thoughtful medical consensus that bone drugs are largely ineffective and unnecessary for preventing fractures in those with osteopenia (Alonso-Coello et al., 2008).

Osteopenia vs osteoporosis

There is a lot of confusion between these two terms. Osteopenia and osteoporosis are NOT the same thing. The difference in a nutshell? Osteoporosis suggests a disease process; osteopenia is a description of lowered bone density.

When you have a diagnosis of osteoporosis, it means you have an actual disorder that can be seen under a microscope. The word “osteoporosis” means “porous bone,” and a close look at the bones of someone with osteoporosis shows the bones are more like Swiss cheese than the spongy appearance of healthy bone.

Osteoporosis is not a normal response to aging, but is indicative of  long-term imbalances which culminate in a bone weakening disease process.

Osteopenia, on the other hand, is not a diagnosis. As noted above, it’s simply a description. This is a key difference between osteopenia and osteoporosis and helps to understand what to do next. Osteoporosis warrants an extensive work-up looking for causes of excessive bone loss. Osteopenia  may or may not be an early warning sign of bone weakening and generally does not trigger the need for a work-up or conventional medical treatment, with some exceptions.

4 questions to ask yourself when you have osteopenia

I firmly reject the “great osteopenia scare” that pushes women into looking at osteopenia as a “disease” to be treated with controversial bone drugs, without much further thought or discussion. Women need better, more complete and more accurate information about their bone health.

To contemplate what osteopenia might mean — or not mean — for your health, ask yourself the following questions. Your answers can help you begin to distinguish a harmless finding of osteopenia from an actual red flag that warrants further investigation.

Are you entering or in menopause?

The average woman loses 10% of her bone mass between the first few years before and the first five years after her last period. Some women lose up to 20% in the menopause transition. Starting this transition with lower-than-normal bone mass (osteopenia) is a signal that you need to prioritize maintaining and rebuilding your bones during and after menopause to reduce your risk of fracture.

Do you have a family history of hip fracture?

When osteopenia is found in someone whose parent(s) have experienced a hip fracture, this may be an early warning sign of future bone fragility. If hip fracture is part of your family history, further testing can help you find out if you are losing bone — and how rapidly.

Have you ever experienced a low-trauma fracture?

If you have osteopenia and have already experienced a low-trauma fracture, this is documented bone weakness and a sign that you need to place more attention on implementing a bone-building lifestyle and nutrition program as I discuss further on in this article.

Do your bone scans reveal rapid and excessive bone loss?

Because bone loss is common in women in perimenopause and menopause, finding “osteopenia” in a single bone scan may mean very little; the real concern is if subsequent scans reveal rapid and excessive bone loss beyond what’s usual during menopause. If you’re losing more than, say, 2% per year during and immediately after menopause (or more than 1% per year if you’re more than five years post menopause), then you may be on your way to osteoporosis. (But we know lots of ways to decrease bone loss in menopause.)

You’ve been told that you have osteopenia. Where do you start?

The Surgeon General’s recommended options for bone health

Science shows conclusively that a program of exercise, dietary changes and nutritional supplements, and lifestyle changes to reduce key bone-damaging factors is at least as effective as bone-building drugs — without the side effects. Most doctors don’t offer an osteopenia diet and exercise program as a first option for osteopenia because they think their patients won’t follow it. That may be true for some people, but you need to know that’s exactly what the Surgeon General has recommended.

That’s right — the Surgeon General of the United States said start with a natural approach focused on improved nutrition and exercise. And the only side effect of that approach is overall better health, longevity, vitality… you get the picture.

So, let’s get you the information you need to make good choices for yourself and your long-term bone health.

What do your bones need to stay strong?

First, let’s jettison one idea right away. Thin bones aren’t necessarily weak ones. (Nor are dense bones necessarily strong!)

Low bone density is one risk factor for osteoporotic fracture; however, having osteopenia doesn’t mean you will have a fracture. In fact, studies suggest that the majority of all people who experience bone fractures don’t have osteoporosis or even osteopenia.

Bone density alone does not determine fracture risk. There is much more involved in the equation and the real concern isn’t how thick or thin your bones are, it’s how strong they are. That’s what determines your risk for fractures, and fractures are what everyone’s concerned about.

So now the question becomes, what do you need to do to keep your bones strong?

• Nutrition – An alkaline diet can nourish your bones by delivering key bone-building nutrients and balancing your pH to protect your bones. Taking a daily nutritional supplement for bone to fill any dietary gaps is also important.
• Exercise – Load bearing exercise is critical to strengthening muscle and activating bone building. Exercise is also essential for decreasing stress and helping to improve circulation and overall health.

What if diet and exercise are not enough?

It’s going to take time for changing your diet and exercise habits to help with osteopenia. If you’re not seeing any improvement, it’s worth looking into factors that might be preventing you from getting the benefit of these changes. For instance, if you suffer from gastrointestinal disorders, it could be a sign that you’re not able to absorb nutrients well; this might be a place where taking steps to solve that problem might be in order, such as taking a high quality probiotic.

Perhaps there are foods you don’t respond well to. Eliminating them from your diet may improve your digestive health — or you might consider taking probiotics to support your gut bacteria. There may also be an underlying health issue that’s leading you to lose excess bone (thyroid disorders, for instance, are quite common in middle-age and older women). If you have nutritional gaps or special nutritional needs, supplementation with a natural bone-building supplement can deliver the nourishment your bones need for rebuilding and strengthening.

It’s also important to understand that there may be situations where the use of a bone drug is warranted for women with osteopenia — but ideally, it’s a temporary thing, not a long-term solution. If you and your doctor decide that this is the way to go, the steps described above are still important as supportive care for your bones and overall health. Remember, a bone drug is not the first step to improving bone health — it’s the last.

You are invited to empower yourself!

If you’ve been told you have osteopenia, I encourage you to complete our free fracture risk assessment quiz for more answers about your bone health and customized recommendations for your next steps. Gain a deeper understanding of how to make truly informed decisions about your bone health. The power is in your hands.

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