All Osteoporosis Articles

A new drug increases bone density and reduces the number of fractures in men fighting prostate cancer and in elderly women with bone loss, researchers report in two studies appearing August 11 in the New England Journal of Medicine. The results of these clinical trials might clear the way for approval of the drug, called denosumab, by the Food and Drug Administration. "This certainly Read more...

A U.S. researcher says it is buyer beware when it comes to postmenopausal women using plant-derived isoflavones to promote bone health. "We found that some plant-derived isoflavones -- soy cotyledon, soy germ, red clover and kudzu -- have a modest effect on suppressing bone loss during post-menopause," Connie Weaver of Purdue University says in a statement. "It's buyer Read more...

A first-of-its-kind osteoporosis drug lowers the risk of bone fractures better than some existing treatments, two studies suggest, and could soon add a more expensive but easier to manage treatment option to the booming market. Amgen Inc. will stress that only two shots of its genetically engineered denosumab, which could be approved for sale this fall, are needed each year. That's important Read more...

Bones are the body's first lines of defense. They protect the brain, heart and lungs and anchor the muscles. They keep us mobile. And all they ask in return is our support to keep them strong: good nutrition, weight-bearing exercise, calcium and vitamin D. Bones' needs also vary with age. You accumulate an astonishing 90 percent of all your bone mass by the time you're 21, so it pays to bank Read more...

WASHINGTON -- It isn't just the thunder thighs that shrink after obesity surgery. Melting fat somehow thins bones, too. Doctors don't yet know how likely patients' bones are to thin enough to break in the years after surgery. But one of the first attempts to tell suggests they might have twice the average person's risk, and be even more likely to break a hand or foot. The Mayo Clinic's Read more...

CLINTON, Iowa  -- Osteoporosis is a very real threat for millions of Americans, but there are preventative measures everyone can take. According to the National Osteoporosis Foundation, nearly 44 million Americans are at risk for osteoporosis. Already, about 10 million individuals have the disease and another 34 million are affected by low bone mass, putting them at risk for osteoporosis. Read more...

Postmenopausal women with hot flashes and night sweats had lower lumbar and total hip bone mineral density, U.S. researchers found. The study, published in the journal Menopause, found postmenopausal women with vasomotor symptoms -- which include hot flashes and night sweats -- had lower bone mineral density. Researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles, and colleagues Read more...

Australian and Vietnam scientists say they've have discovered the bone density of vegan Buddhist nuns and non-vegetarian women is identical. Professor Tuan Nguyen of the Garvan Institute of Medical Research in Sydney and Ho-Pham Thuc Lan from the Pham Ngoc Thach Medical University in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, compared the bone health of 105 post-menopausal vegan nuns and 105 non-vegetarian Read more...

"Falling all over" a pet usually refers to indulging or pampering a four-legged companion, but a new report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that many Americans, particularly the elderly, are falling over their dogs and cats literally ... and hurting themselves. According to the CDC, more than 21,000 older Americans are treated in hospital Read more...

Boosting calcium consumption spurs weight loss, according to a study published in the most recent issue of the British Journal of Nutrition, but only in people whose diets are calcium deficient. Angelo Tremblay and his team at Université Laval's Faculty of Medicine in France made the discovery in a 15-week weight loss program they conducted on obese women. The participants consumed on Read more...

What You Should Know Fragile bones can happen because of poor nutrition or medical problems. Known as osteoporosis, porous bones are a silent problem that is often preventable. Many people do not know that they have tiny holes in their bones until they break (fracture) a bone. Low bone mass is considered a major public health threat. As many as 55 percent of people age 50 and older have Read more...

It's common knowledge that calcium and vitamin D are crucial to maintaining strong bones, but exercise also plays an important role. In study published in February's issue of the Journal of Strength Training, Pam Hinton, assistant professor in the Department of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology in the MU College of Environmental Sciences, examined bone densities in men ages 21 to 45 who Read more...

Could Hatha yoga be the key to avoiding falling in your old age? How about eliminating your fear of falling? Indiana University researchers found promising results in a study on just that. After a 12-week, twice weekly hatha yoga class, taught by a professional yoga therapist, study participants reported a reduced fear of falling, increased lower body flexibility and a reduction in their Read more...

WASHINGTON -- A chemical mediator in the blood that influences immune cell migration also plays a key role in maintaining the balance between the build-up and breakdown of bones in the body, a new study shows. This mediator, which acts on cells that degrade bone, may provide a new target for scientists developing therapies and preventions for bone-degenerating diseases such as osteoporosis Read more...

BETHESDA, Md. -- Can people be trained to avoid falling? New research suggests so.  According to new research from the Journal of Neurophysiology, exposing people to unstable situations in a laboratory may actually help train them to maintain their balance on a slippery floor and avoid falls in the future. The study furthered the understanding of how the brain develops fall prevention Read more...

Newswise -- New findings out of Wake Forest University School of Medicine and the University of East Anglia show that long-term use of a popular class of oral diabetic drugs doubles the risk of fractures in women with type 2 diabetes. "We knew going into this study that there was an association between thiazolidinediones and fracture risk, however the magnitude of risk had not been Read more...

Oct. 29 -- A class of medicines prescribed to treat millions of people with osteoporosis appear to increase the risk of irregular heart beats, according to an analysis of earlier studies of so-called bisphosphonates by researchers from the University of Miami. The researchers pooled three studies with a total of 16,322 participants taking a placebo or osteoporosis drugs that included Read more...

Bone loss commonly occurs as we age, especially for women. Until recently, women were routinely prescribed estrogen after menopause to prevent bone loss and fractures. When a Women's Health Initiative study revealed that estrogen therapy increased the risk of breast cancer, stroke and Alzheimer's disease, many women stopped taking their hormones and started looking for alternative treatments Read more...

Millions of people who take medications to treat indigestion and heartburn could be at increased risk of osteoporosis, Canadian researchers found. The study suggests that those who use the medications regularly for five years had a 44 percent higher chance of hip fracture, The Daily Telegraph reported Saturday. The scientists at the University of Manitoba say they suspect the Read more...

Osteoporosis Prevention and Treatment by Maria Adams, MS, MPH, RDCalcium is a mineral that is essential to the growth and maintenance of strong bones. Your body needs a constant supply of calcium. When there is not enough calcium available from the diet, your body pulls what it needs from your bones. Over time, a diet lacking in calcium can lead to osteoporosis . Why Should I Follow a Read more...