<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>>
 
Thank you to those who replied to my query about experience with Fosamax
(for osteoporosis). In response to requests, this is a (long-ish - sorry)
summary of the replies:
 
Merck says Fosamax is gf. No one, including one person who described
himself as a very sensitive reactor, described gluten-type problems with it.
 
**Two replies from people (one man with lots of gestro problems and one
woman) who have been on Fosamax for a year. It is too soon for either of
them to know if their bone density has improved, but both reported no
difficulty so long as they followed the directions: take first thing in the
morning with a full glass of water, then nothing else by mouth and remain
upright (sitting or standing) for 30 minutes to an hour to give your body a
chance to absorb this difficult-to-absorb drug.
 
The man reported mild stomach cramping after about 2 weeks of the drug
which vanished in a week or two.
 
**One woman who has been on Fosamax for five years (no follow-up bone
densitometry yet, however) says she had some stomach and esphogeal problems
at first when she was less than careful about following the directions; no
problems since.
 
**Another woman reported taking it for three weeks with no problems, but
wound up in the hospital for a week with bleeding ulcers, requiring 4 units
of blood. She said, however, that if she could take Fosamax, she would in a
heartbeat because it is the only thing that has been shown to actually
rebuild bone.
 
I saw my doctor (bone mineral specialist) yesterday, who said there is a
fair chance of experiencing mild crmping at first which will then
disappear. In her opinion, reports of serious problems are overblown---she
estimates 10% of patients are not able to tolerate it.
 
Estrogen, everyone seems to agree, is the best anti-osteo drug you (if you
are post-menopausal) can take. Fosamax is indicated if things have
deteriorated to a dangerous point.
 
A note about calcium: contrary to what has been posted to this list about
the superiority of calcium carbonate to calcium citrate, my doc. says
citrate is better. Carbonate does absorb better, she says, but more of it
spills into the urine, so in the end you will get more out of the citrate.
 
Thanks again, list -- Mary Brown