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When you are considering how to prevent and treat Osteoporosis, my first advice is do not listen to Gidget (Sally Fields). If you watch any TV, you would have seen Sally telling you how great Boniva is. Boniva is a bisphosphonate drug. Other examples are Fosamax and Actonel and even injectable forms. There are no mainstream Rx drugs that you need to successfully prevent and reverse this condition. My successes in my office are so dramatic that often times we have considered getting the Harrisburg Patriot or TV stations to air a story on it. Many patients with the worse bones celebrate their increased bone densities.
Anti-resorptive medicines like Bisphosphonates essentially nearly kill your bone to improve the DEXA scan result which is essentially measuring the shadow a bone makes with an X-ray. This shadow density does not mean a bone is strong and healthy. Dig up bones from a cemetery and you will have some good DEXA results but crumbly fragile bones. I have had Dentists come to my office with their wives and say "Don't even think about using a bisphosphonate. I know what they do to bone". Dentists know that dental implants may fail due to such meds.
An increasingly more prevalent side effect is Mandibular Necrosis; death of the jaw bone!! It seems that an uneducated person is quicker at questioning this paradox than a physician. The uneducated ask "how can it be good for my bones if it can kill a jaw bone?" Their doctor then says "trust me, I'm a doctor..and the FDA would not allow it to be sold if it was not good for your bones". Then they come see me.
It kills the jaw bone because it poisons the Osteoclasts that cut away old bone so your bones can no longer remodel themselves. Remodeling means the body naturally removes old brittle bone and replaces it with new bone so you are not walking around on brittle old bones. This can cause another horrific side effect: atypical femoral fractures which is when a woman is just walking and both of her femurs break all the way through at the top of her thigh! Yes, often they both break together. This break occurs in a spot that the femur almost never breaks at due to the bone being nearly dead.
The other telling complication of anti-resorptive meds is death of the metaphysis of the femur (the widest strongest part) and the leg then snaps off high up the femur 'atypically'.
My approach uses nutrients, diet, and youthful levels of prescription hormones. My Patients' DEXA scans show recurring improvement with repeat testing. Many patients are eventually no longer osteoporotic after years of this program.
Treatment Plan
Diet and Lifestyle
The diet must be alkaline forming; not acid forming (see our Reference Library for our Acid Alkaline food chart). An acid forming diet makes the body over acidic which will then overwhelm the body's bicarbonate buffering system and calcium leaches from the bones to buffer acids. Sodas contain phosphoric acid frequently which dissolves the bones. Carbonation becomes Carbonic acid which again makes the body acidic. Excess vinegar, animal proteins, and cranberry juices also acidify.
Eat Kale, Collards and dark green leafy vegetables as they are both alkaline and contain calcium.Broccoli, Sesame, and figs are high in calcium. Raw milk (not pasteurized) is alkaline and rich in calcium.
Exercises
All exercise can help the bone but especially weight bearing exercise.
Supplements
DHEA: dose 10-25 mg in AM. Use lower doses for non-obese smaller women and the higher dose for larger obese women. Beware of acne or extra facial hair as DHEA is androgenic. We sell tons of this without side effects and many benefits.
Strontium Citrate (Vital Nutrients): 2-3 daily or nightly. Take at bedtime or any time that you are not simultaneously taking calcium as they compete for absorption. Do be sure you are getting plenty of calcium if on Strontium.
Thorne Research Advanced Bone Support (formerly Oscap): 4-5 daily divided 1-2 per meal. This is a combination product with Calcium. Usually 6-700 mg of supplemental calcium is sufficient. Calcium is best absorbed with a meal.
MCHC by Progressive labs. This is a combination of Calcium Citrate and a Beef bone extract. Dose is 3-4 per day with meal. This can be used every other day as a substitute for the Thorne Bone product. In fact most of my success stories were achieved alternating days with Thorne's product.
Collagen Powder (Marine or Beef source): This is an optional addition as bone and other connective tissues contain Collage as the primary structural protein.
Silica by Alta Health: This is also optional but likely helpful.
Vitamin D3: If you are not taking more than 1000 IU daily, then you should taking a loading dose of D3 at 10,000 IU daily for about 4 weeks and then decrease dose to 5000-7000 IU daily; even in the summer. Testing can assure the level but most everyone can take 5000 IU daily. This improves immunity, reduces cancer, improves cancer survival and builds bone among many other benefits.
Vitamin K: Vitamin K2 occurs in two forms MK-4 and MK-7. Both can help bone density. I recommend either Thorne Research Vitamin K capsules which contain all forms of K or at a bare minimum 180 mcg MK-7 as found in the Protocol for Life Balance K2 MK7 D3 capsules. Alternatively, eating a large serving of Kale daily will suffice. Vitamin K is essential for prevening calcium buildup in arteries.
PRESCRIPTIONS / Rx:
*******RX Biestrogen, or Estradiol, Progesterone and Testosterone: Bio-Identical hormones in an Ethanol solution/'gel' are ESSENTIAL to building bone. Nutrients without hormones will not be effective enough. Learn How to become a patient.
Avoid list
Bisphosphonate drugs.
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Injections and Intravenous therapies
EDTA Chelation therapy Please see the book "Bypassing Bypass Surgery" by Dr. Elmer Cranton MD. EDTA Chelation IV is a weekly 3 hour IV which I have seen countless benefits from in my patients.I have witnessed every positive claim made for this IV in my office.Surprisingly, it has been shown to help strengthen the bone via the pulsatile Parathyroid hormone secretion from this IV.
Lab tests
I no longer test for bone resorption products such as Pyrilinks-Das they do not change or alter my treatment plan.Vitamin D levels should be optimized to above 60.Measure the total 25 hydroxy D level.Hormone repletion is extremely important.Testosterone (total and free) measured only by Quest is essential in women (other laboratories cannot measure accurately in the female range although they will do a worthless test for you; comes back low usually if not Quest).Testosterone is excellent for building bone and muscle and this hormone alone may make significant gains in bone density in my experience.
Semiannually, DEXA scans to measure bone density.Free heel scan screens are useful but are not as meaningful as a hip and spine measurement.
Rx Meds
The only Rx meds are bio-identical hormones for men and women.Post-menopausal women should be on my Hormone Replacement program. Rx Progesterone, estrogens and testosterone are essential.Over the counter Progesterone Ethanol solution is great too.I never use Rx Osteoporosis meds except rarely Miacalcin.