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I recently asked to hear from list members who had improvement in their bone
scans through diet and exercise. I received a total of 17 responses; 7 had
shown improvement without medication. I have my second bone scan tomorrow -
I hope to add my name to this 7! I have included a summary of responses.
Thanks to all!
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In my first year on the gf diet, I had significant improvement in my
osteopenia (in the hip) but only slight improvement (insignificant) in my
osteoporosis (in the spine and forearm) without medication. I subsequently
started taking Fosamax. My understanding is that I would probably have
continued to improve without the medication, but that the improvement will
be more dramatic with Fosamax. I will know more once my next set of scans
comes in.
- - - -
I was diagnosed with celiac after age 40. I then had my Dr. do a bone scan
just to be safe. My bones turned out to be normal.
However, 3 years later I was approached to do another bone scan by the Loma
Linda University Medical Center in a study they were conducting on women and
bone disease. After the scan the Dr. came out to talk to me and I thought
"Oh boy, here we go, osteoporosis!" Imagine my surprise when he wanted to
ask me about my diet, my disease, and if I took supplements etc, because my
bones had actually improved!
Remember, I was "normal for my age" at the first exam, but now I have bones
which as he put it, were 10 years younger or healthier than average women my
age! I was 45, and he said "I had the bones of a woman at age 35."
I don't use milk products (intolerant and allergic to them), I was a
vegetarian, and the only supplements I took were "Tums," and these were for
recurrent heartburn due to acid reflux, and I did not take them every day,
but only as needed.
My only conclusion can only be that the information I have been reading is
true, eating too many milk products and meats can actually leach calcium
from our bodies. And, after going GF my body was able to absorb the what
naturally occurring calcium I did get more efficiently than before. So
therefore, my bones were strengthened further.
This is just one woman's experience, you will have to draw your own
conclusions.
- - - -
I sure would be interested in learning what you've heard from others. I took
Fosomax for two years but was an undiagnosed celiac and the result is that
my bone density didn't improve appreciably. I am taking a testosterone to
help build bone and that didn't help either. (Maybe it did as I didn't get
any worse.) Now that I am beginning to absorb nutrients on a GF diet, I am
looking for improvement. Meanwhile, I have stomach acid problems - due to
Fosomax? The hardest part of the equation is exercising regularly.
- - - -
I'm 43 years old and was diagnosed with CD 8 years ago. I have osteopenia,
not osteoporosis, and so far, my bone scans have remained the same over the
years. I'm not lactose intolerant, so I drink milk and take calcium
supplements with vitamin D. I also do weight-bearing exercise.
- - - -
I am on Fosamax. My guess is that diet could alone change bone mass - but
the Fosamax is a used to stop the body from robbing the bones of calcium -
something about blocking uptake? I guess that could mean it wouldn't need to
be a permanent thing? I am not a doctor, and I haven't been fortunate enough
to reverse my osteo, but I have halted further deterioration with diet and
Fosamax.
- - - -
There is a really good book - Nutritional Healing by Balch & Balch. They
have lots of diet approaches listed - and while I know you didn't ask about
books, I have found the book excellent for other ailments. Perhaps the
library has a copy you can glance at - most health stores do.
- - - -
I took lots of calcium and still developed a severe case of osteoporosis
without the Fosamax. My yearly bone scans show much less damage since I
have been on the Fosamax. I was told that Osteoporosis runs in families so
I always tried to get more then enough calcium.
- - - -
the best treatment is exercise...walking is great...20 min a day
supplemented by a balanced cal/mag with vit D and Boron. Two drs
recommended TriBoron by Twin Labs. My bone density is 1.5...not bad for a
58yr old.
- - - -
I am 56 years old and was diagnosed with CD 2 years ago. I had a bone
density DEXA test a little over a year ago and found that my rating was a
-2.5 which is the beginning range of osteoporosis. A year ago I began using
miacalcin. I didn't want to use any of the other menopause or osteoporosis
treatments. Several weeks ago I had another DEXA test to see if my bone
density had improved and it had! It is now -2.34. I have been taking 1500
calcium/day as well as garlic, baby aspirin, lecithin and I am moderately
active. It seemed to me that this was good news - that I had improved this
much. However, now I need to find someone locally - a doctor - who can tell
me if this is good enough. I eat quite nutritiously - not going overboard,
but trying something with soy products about once a week and I do use some
soy flour in baking. I guess until someone who knows tells me that I am not
doing enough, I feel like the diet, exercise, and supplementation is doing
the trick.
- - - -
I look forward to reading your summary. I'm a 65 year old post menopausal
woman, diagnosed CS about four or five years ago. My MD's all recommend
HRT, Fosamax, and other drugs, all of which I refused. I'm taking calcium
complex supplements prescribed by my chiropractor/nutritionist. The MD's
say diet, food supplements and exercise alone are not enough, and that I
should take those drugs. I react not too well to drugs, especially those
taken on a long-term basis. So I avoid taking meds whenever I could. I've
taken bone density scans, and they've shown a slight decrease in my bone
mass - I attribute this to my various bouts with diarrhea - and I think,
hopefully, is now controlled due to a sensitivity/allergy to soy products.
For me to tell this to the MD's will probably pass through with dismissal
nods, so I look forward to hearing of any alternative methods of dealing
with Osteoporosis.
- - - -
After celiac disease diagnosis, I had a bone density scan and was told the
reading in my spine was low. About one year later I had another test and the
scan was normal. The tests were made at two different hospitals, so the
equipment was different.
To increase my bone density, I increased my intake of calcium-rich
vegetables (such as kale), took calcium supplements (calcium/magnesium
tablets), and increased weight bearing exercise. I am very happy I was able
to achieve an improvement without medication.
- - - -
I experienced a remarkable improvement in my osteopoenia (I think that's the
right term--its kind of pre-osteoporosis) just after 1 year of being GF and
taking calcium supplements. The MD is pretty careful about knowing how much
calcium I ingest and in what form. I am lactose intolerant so I have cut
way back on dairy. But I eat a lot of greens, and she suggested taking
calcium fortified OJ, which I do when I remember to do so.
Also, my dentist is much impressed with the improvement in my mouth--a real
stoppage of bone loss in the jaw means improved gums. Yeah!
- - - -
I had trouble about four years ago with my hips and back in about 1996. I
had alot of xrays and tests, then finally had the bone density test. I was
told I had osteoporosis, and would need to take vitamin D (Drisdol cap)
prescription twice a week and calcium dietary supplement everyday. I was
also told to walk at least 4 days a week for minimum of 20 minutes to
maximum of 45 minutes. This last November I had another bone density test
done, and was told that I had shown improvement. I still take vitamin D
prescription and calcium dietary supplement. One more thing to mention is I
have had cd for 12 years, and have been on hormone replacement therapy for
13 years this spring.
- - - -
Bone scans two years apart showed improved bone density after using calcium
supplements and walking more.
- - - -
Here's an article (followed by two websites) that explains it well:
http://www.drmcdougall.com/debate.html
"High protein diets cause serious metabolic changes that lead to bone loss
and kidney stones. Red meat, poultry, fish, shellfish, and eggs are acidic
in make up. Vegetable foods are alkaline by nature. The body guards its
acid-base balance (pH) carefully so that all of the pH-dependent
biochemical reactions take place normally. The dietary-derived acid load
from high-protein animal foods must be buffered. The primary buffering
system of the body is the bones which dissolve for that purpose into
phosphates and calcium. The alkaline phosphate then buffers the animal-food
derived acid. This is the first step in bone loss that leads to
osteoporosis. The second step leading to osteoporosis consists of changes in
kidney physiology caused by the acid, the sulfa containing amino acids
(plentiful in meat), and the increased solute load, all resulting in a loss
of large amounts of bone material, including calcium, into the urine. The
presence of this bone material in the kidney system also lays the foundation
for calcium-based kidney stones."
"The Nurse's Health Study recently found women who consumed 95 grams of
protein a day compared with those who consumed less than 68 grams a day had
a 22% greater risk of forearm fractures (Am J Epidemiol 143:472, 1996).
Metabolic ward studies done on people have found a negative calcium balance
is created when 95 grams of protein are consumed with 500 mg of calcium. The
calcium intake must be raised up to 800 mg before calcium balance is
achieved (the calcium entering the body is the same as the amount leaving).
People following the Zone diet commonly consume 100 grams of protein and
less than 800 mg of calcium. Athletes attempting to follow the Zone diet
will consume 140 grams or more of protein a day. Even with a very high
calcium intake of 1400 mg daily these people are still in negative calcium
balance."
=================
http://www.veg.org/veg/Articles/calcium.html
Everything you ever wanted to know about calcium in 5 easy lessons.
===================
http://www.vrg.org/nutrition/calcium.htm
Calcium in the Vegan Diet by Reed Mangels, Ph.D., R.D.
- - - -
Sorry, but I can't help you with information. I am at the stage where I'm
being offered drugs to combat low bone density and osteoporosis in later
life. I prefer to be drug free, if possible. Please summarize you findings.
I will read it with great interest. Thanks for posing the question.
- - -
Let me know what you find out. I asked my doctor if my bones would improve
with diet, exercise and calcium and he said they could, but Fosomax was the
best bet. So I went on it - have absolutely ZERO stomach problems - and my
bones improved a LOT in one year (via Dexa Bone Scans). So that's my
recommendation.
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