Go beyond diet when treating osteoporosis

Osteoporosis is a serious illness, and there's more to treating it than just a healthy diet full of calcium. We'll go over various supplements and medications and dispel some common myths along the way.

Many doctors recommend a baseline bone density scan for women when menstrual periods become irregular. Depending on the results, the doctor may recommend calcium and vitamin D supplements or other therapy. Here are some of the additional measures that are often taken:

• For women, treatment for osteoporosis has often been hormone replacement therapy (HRT) to replace the estrogen lost at menopause. Estrogen does decrease bone loss, but newer research suggests that HRT may only work in women who have osteoporosis when they begin taking the hormone.
• HRT has been under scrutiny. Nonhormonal drugs offer an alternarive, and include bisphosphonates, such as etidronate and alendronate. They decrease bone resorption and shift the balance toward the formation of healthy tissue.
• Calcitonin is a hormonal preparation taken by injection or as a nasal spray, and works in a similar fashion.
• Another new medication is raloxifene, which helps prevent osteoporosis by modulating the body's estrogen receptors. This drug, while not a hormone, offers many of the same benefits as estrogen without increasing the risk of breast and uterine cancers.

• Adolescence is the critical window for developing strong bones to last a lifetime.
• One recent study found that women over 50 who drank less than 250 millilitres (one tall glass) of milk a day as girls had significantly lower bone density and twice the risk of fractures compared with those who drank a glass or more. This difference existed no matter how much milk the women drank as adults or how much calcium they took.

It's widely believed that black cohosh, red clover, and chasteberry can help osteoporosis. The truth is that while many women try these herbal remedies to relieve menopausal symptoms, there is no evidence that these substances (or any other herbal preparation) has any effect on calcium metabolism related to bone loss.

If you've been diagnosed with osteoporosis or are at risk, use this guide and speak with your doctor to determine the best course of treatment. There are many hormonal and nonhormonal treatments available, and it's up to you and your doctor to determine what's best for your individual needs.