Dr. R Hoggan wrote:
> ...absorption of competing minerals. Magnesium, for instance, is
> critical to parathyroid and thyroid function, and have an 
> enormous impact on bone density. Yet conventional wisdom has 
> women swamping their systems with calcium via dairy products. 
> Not surprisingly, I have not been able to find a single 
> report that shows reduced fracture rates among women who eat 
> the recommended quantities of
> dairy products.      
> 

You're right on target. The fact that calcium/magnesium supplements always
come in ratios of 2:1, 4:1 or more baffles me given that the ratio in
hunter-gatherer diets is 1:1 and that Americans already get large amounts of
calcium from dairy consumption. All the studies I've seen for treating or
preventing osteoporosis with dairy or calcium supplements (or calcium and
vitamin D) without magnesium showed dissappointing results. Why doesn't it
occur to more scientists and doctors to try to balance calcium with
magnesium, vitamin K and the other nutrients that may improve calcium
absorption and to recommend foods that contain more absorbable forms of
magnesium than dairy products do? I'll bet money is one factor.

This latest study below is yet another example of what I'm talking about.
They recommend increasing calcium intake through dairy for GERD patients
that develop hip fractures, despite the lack of evidence for preventing or
treating osteoporosis with dairy or calcium supplements. Strangely, they
don't mention magnesium despite its intake being associated with better bone
mineral density (J Am Geriatr Soc. 2005 Nov;53(11):1875-80. Magnesium intake
from food and supplements is associated with bone mineral density in healthy
older white subjects.), despite it being a known effective treatment of GERD
(Minerva Pediatr. 1991 Dec;43(12):797-800. Magnesium hydroxide and aluminum
hydroxide in the treatment of gastroesophageal reflux), and despite it being
known that 68% of Americans do not consume the RDA of magnesium (King D,
Mainous A 3rd, Geesey M, Woolson R. Dietary magnesium and C-reactive protein
levels. J Am Coll Nutr. 2005 Jun 24(3):166-71.).

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<<An article in the December 27, 2006 issue of the Journal of the American
Medical Association found that people who had used GERD medications called
proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) for more than one year had an increased risk
of hip fracture. The risk was 2.6 times greater among long-term users of
higher doses. Overall, those with the highest dosage and longest duration of
use had the greatest increase in fracture risk. 

These results were based on the comparison of 13,556 people with hip
fractures to over 135,000 otherwise similar people who did not experience
fractures. The authors of this large study concluded, "For elderly patients
who require long-term and particularly high-dose PPI therapy, IT MAY BE
PRUDENT TO REEMPHASIZE INCREASED CALCIUM INTAKE, PREFERABLY FROM A DAIRY
SOURCE [emphasis mine], and coingestion of a meal when taking insoluble
calcium supplements." >> http://osteoporosis.about.com