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Hello,

Welcome to your May issue.

Some months I review a single Osteopenia - Osteoporosis research issue and in others I cover a number of different research results.

This month’s letter contains five ‘tidbits’ - all taken from Osteoporosis research articles I have been reading:

1. Evista has a good side effect: PREVENTING breast cancer.

2. Are Calcium supplements worth the cost? - from the Mayo Clinic

3. Men, prostrate cancer, Osteoporosis treatments.

4. What the Iranian researchers learned about soy.

5. Update about strontium - possible side effects.

1. EVISTA HAS A GOOD SIDE EFFECT. Evista (Raloxifene) shown to be as good as Tamoxifin in preventing breast cancer. Evista is an drug used to treat both Osteopenia and Osteoporosis. The results of a 5 years study showed that Raloxifene is as effective as Tamoxifen in reducing breast cancer. Also women assigned to the raloxifene group had 36% fewer uterine cancers and 29% fewer blood clots than those taking tamoxifen.

This is good news! It might be worth discussing Evista with your physician. Do read the web page about the drug so you can ask intelligent questions and remember that both Tamaoxifen and Raloxifene increase a woman’s risk of blood clots

2. ARE CALCIUM SUPPLEMENTS WORTH THE COST? Well, it depends on your age or whether or not your hips are at risk. The Mayo Clinic reports that “after an average of seven years, women who took (Calcium and Vitamin D supplements) scored only 1 percent higher on hipbone density tests than did women who took a placebo. But the supplements reduced the risk of hip fractures by 12 percent. They offered no protection from spine or wrist fractures. For women age 60 and older - those most likely to experience hip fractures - the supplements reduced the risk of hip fractures by 21 percent!

Note: that the supplements contained Vitamin D and not just calcium. Now this is only one study but after reading it, I have decided to spend more time finding articles about Calcium supplements. One thing I have noticed is that most research studies now include Vit. D with any calcium so I am glad that I chose the Advacal Ultra for my supplement. If you want to read more about Calcium or Advacal, go to the Index page of Osteopenia3.com

3. MEN, PROSTRATE CANCER AND OSTEOPOROSIS. Many men develop Osteoporosis during or after a course of treatment for prostrate cancer. The Pittsburgh Medical center reports that weekly treatment with alendronate (Fosamx or Actonel) increases bone density in such patients.

4. WHAT IRANIAN RESEARCHERS LEARNED ABOUT SOY. More and more countries seem to be including bone density in their research studies. And many nations look for natural means of increasing bone density. Here is a study from Iran about soy protein.

The Iranian study shows that 1.25 ounces of soy protein appears to reduce bone resorption. Researchers in Tehran joined researchers in Stillwater, Oklahoma to publish a study about women in their early 60's who were taught to use a few ounces of soy protein in their meals each day.

The trial was testing whether Soy Phytoestrogens, which have properties like estrogen, would affect bone turnover. The researches found that although the soy did not increase the activity of bone building (osteoblasts) , it did reduce the rate at which old bone is removed.

As you know the drugs like Fosamax, Actonel, Boniva are designed to reduce the removal of old bone, so this study might prove of interest to researchers looking for alternative ways of treating postmenopausal bone loss through bone resorption. Of course, one study does not make a treatment but I pass this along for your interest. After all 1.25 ounces is not much soy protein to include in daily menus.

5. Strontium. If you are taking natural strontium, it may or may not be significant that Servier, the company that makes the synthetic form (under the brand name Protelos) advises that their drug should be taken at bedtime without other food since food makes it difficult to absorb. They also issue some precautions for their drug. I do not know if precautions apply to natural strontium also. (I have found no reference to these precautions in articles or research about Natural Strontium.) But if you want to read Servier’s precautions, you will find them on the Protelos page of the Osteopenia3 web site. Just use the SiteMap/Index to find it.

Next month I shall cover a single topic in greater depth. Perhaps a review of Calcium supplements or if I can find the rest of the studies about it, Is Milk the problem? As always I look for new studies. I recently read some about exercising that seem to offer new insights and I want to get these to you too.

So many new things....so little time!

Meantime be well. Do be sure to get out of your chairs without using your hands AND give a few minutes each day to practicing your balance so you do not fall! Preventing falls is one of the best fracture preventatives.

Kate