<p>Yeah, I have real osteoporosis, not osteo-lite. I had my bone scan a few years ago, so I probably have no bone density left by now :). I have to say I really felt betrayed by my body. I turned down the biophosphates. An endodontist that I saw back then told me that from the studies he saw, the risk of necrosis with the biophosphates never went away, even if you stopped taking them. I just cannot live without my face.</p>
<p>OK, ladies, check out this book on Amazon:
“The Myth of Osteoporosis” by Gillian Sanson
Gets good reviews. May be worth reading for an alternative viewpoint.</p>
<p>^^^^I’ve got a gift card I was going to use for my Kindle. Thanks for the suggestion. Hopefully it’s in their Kindle library.</p>
<p>It isn’t but this one is
[Building Bone Vitality : A Revolutionary Diet Plan to Prevent Bone Loss and Reverse Osteoporosis–Without Dairy Foods, Calcium, Estrogen, or Drugs eBook: Michael Castleman](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/Building-Bone-Vitality-Osteoporosis-Without-ebook/dp/B0026HPHXU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1268343668&sr=1-1”>http://www.amazon.com/Building-Bone-Vitality-Osteoporosis-Without-ebook/dp/B0026HPHXU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1268343668&sr=1-1</a>)</p>
<p>I would also read about acid/alkaline foods- I have something for that on my ipod and
[Osteopilates:</a> Increase Bone Density Reduce Fracture Risk Look and Feel Great eBook: Karena Thek Lineback](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/Osteopilates-Increase-Density-Fracture-ebook/dp/B001D244P6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1268343781&sr=1-1]Osteopilates:”>http://www.amazon.com/Osteopilates-Increase-Density-Fracture-ebook/dp/B001D244P6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1268343781&sr=1-1)</p>
<p>Ok I looked at TIMBUK2 website cause I wanted to get a different case for my macbook, but now virtually every webpage I go to, ( including this one) has a Timbuk2 ad on it.
or TWO!
( Guess I have to throw out my cookies)</p>
<p>OK…so what’s going to happen to me?? I take Fosomax once a week…and calcium/D twice daily. I eat well…and I have osteoporosis…back and hip…or something like that. I exercise daily and hope for the best. Is my jaw going to fall apart??</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>"When I posted in November about my dad falling and breaking his ankle, one helpful CC poster sent me this info… unfortunately I saved the advice but not that person’s name, so thank you whoever you were:</p>
<p>As for broken bones in older people, there is solid evidence that small amounts of balance work prevent falls. Three tips, since all of us face this in our families:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Walk on uneven surfaces. Some facilities have now installed short stretches of uneven walkway - with bars. Studies suggest that walking over uneven pavement a few times teaches the brain. </p></li>
<li><p>Train the vestibular system. That’s your balance system. Easy to do but very few people do it. I have vertigo so I’ve had to work on mine. It’s easy: stand on one foot. Do that for a long time. Try moving your leg around while you stand. Then try doing it with your eyes closed or in a darkened room. Your brain learns quickly.</p></li>
<li><p>Use some form of wobble ball or board. The brain runs the show but studies strongly suggest that foot and ankle awareness helps a lot. Get one of those wobbly pads and stand on it in your socks or bare feet. Start in shoes if that’s easier for you. You’ll improve quickly. </p></li>
</ol>
<p>These skills prevent slips, wobbles, etc. from becoming falls.</p>
<p>There is also a body of research on learning how to fall, but that’s a different topic. Older people can be taught to fall so they don’t land on their hips. Better to break a wrist than be in a wheelchair. It seems that older people tend to shield their arms and hands when they fall and need to be shown to do the opposite. This is especially necessary for women because so many have weaker bones."</p>
<p>I’ve been trying to add some balance exercise every day. Picture me as some nomadic shepard from the pages of National Geographic as I stand on one foot with the other planted on my thigh while I grill my veggies. (OK, that worked once…)</p>
<p>
The thing is that for eons, women who survived to go through menopause generally died shortly thereafter. There were few women who lived long enough to get osteoporosis. The stereotypical picture of the elder woman as a hunchbacked hag (remember Snow White’s witch?) has its basis in fact.</p>
<p>Chevda- good point. I just googled average life spans and am shocked to see that in 1900 the average was 48 years. Now it’s 77 or 78 years.</p>
<p>Emeraldkitty- Love the Building Bone Vitality book.</p>
<p>One thing to remember about average life spans is that huge numbers of people back then died before they were 1. That dragged the average down pretty quick. 48 then probably didn’t look that much older than 48 now, or at least how 48 looks in most thirld world countries…where the woman has had a horrible 48 years, somewhat like my grandmother did when she died at 54 in Texas
…</p>
<p>
I remember it well. My mother was pressured and bullied by all her doctors to go on HRT back in the 1990’s. I did some reading of what was publicly available at the time, and I concluded that there was no basis for routine use of HRT and there were plenty of risks, including heart disease, stroke, and cancer. My mother is very happy she listened to me back then and not her doctors. I definitely blame doctors for blindly following along, as well as the medical organizations for recommending that HRT be part of standard practice without sufficient evidence. The literature available in books and articles (mostly not online back then) seemed very clear to me, and I have no background in science.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Well, actually they haven’t! Childbirth was dangerous enough in the past that for most of human history, women getting to a point of menopause was relatively rare.</p>
<p>VH-
The pts who had the spontaneous femur fx were on Actonel… :(</p>
<p>Thumper1, what I remember about the jaw necrosis is that it only happens in connection with an invasive dental procedure, like having a tooth pulled. The endodontist told me that his practice had stopped doing dental implant procedures on anyone who had ever taken biophosphonates, because they felt the risk was too high. He also said that it was an awful thing to have happen. </p>
<p>My gynecologist never mentioned this side effect, and I later called her back to ask about jaw necrosis and my upcoming dental work. She said that jaw necrosis was so rare, and really only happened to those taking IV biophosphanates for cancer treatments. The endodontist on the other hand, well, I got the feeling that he had personally seen this in his practice, because he was pretty worried about it. I remember him saying to me, after I told him what my gynecologist said, “Yeah it’s rare, until it happens to you.”</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Not sure the latter part of that is true. Childbirth mortality was of course high in the past, but “most” women did not die of it. I have a geneology on my desk from a family I’m related to, and just leafing through it randomly, I found most women listed to have lived to an age past typical menopause.</p>
<p>Of course, that’s related to the misunderstanding so rampant that states since the average lifespan in the past was in the fifties, that meant that most people didn’t live past that. Of course, they did. The average age includes the large numbers of children who died very young. Once past that, most people lived to what we consider old age, men and women.</p>
<p>EK the book looks very worthwhile. In a review, there is mention of what I grew up hearing in the natural foods community. Part of the key is acid/base balance, and our meat heavy diet contributes to acid conditions that deplete bone of calcium to balance the lower ph of the blood. The phosphorus load from drinking soda also contributes to the problem</p>
<p>Will order the book. I have osteopenia, and due to my mom’s history of compression fractures, take that warning from the dexa scan rather seriously. But I was rather dismayed, as I’ve always walked, run, hiked, eaten my leafy greens and a healthy diet. I grew up in the Arizona sun, and now take all sorts of calcium and Vit D as I live in the midwest. But my calcium intake was on the low side for a good part of my life.</p>
<p>Depending on my bone scans, I might take a biophosphenate at some point, if all other measures don’t help. You’re playing with risk of some sort when taking most drugs, a good reason to avoid them,though would choose that drug related risk if other measures don’t work. I was reassured by my dentist who has a large practice, and has never seen a case of jaw bone problems. He agreed with the above advice that the problem is confined to women using the higher intensity biophosphenates used for cancer. Will be interesting to see how all this plays out with more research.</p>
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</p>
<p>You also need to lift weights. I’ve been doing this for four and a half years – some really heavy weights – and it has made a world of difference. </p>
<p>I started out with 3-lbs and 5-lbs, and now I routinely use 8-, 10-, and 12-lbs for my arms, and a 30-lb barbell that I hold at hip level, lift up as if for a bicep curl, and then lift over my head. Repeat 10 X, and do two or three sets. Also a 20-lb weight that I hold above my head and lower behind my head (just bending at elbows). </p>
<p>My doc told me it’s the stressing of the entire skeleton that helps your bones. Lifting and holding heavy things over your head is a great stressor.</p>
<p>It’s created an enormous improvement in my bone density scores.</p>
<p>^^^^That’s encouraging. I’ve been doing weight bearing exercises and lifting weights for 15 years (took a couple of years off of weights due to disc problems, but started back in July). </p>
<p>Every little bit helps, at least I hope.</p>
<p>OK-- you guys have motivated me. I am off to the gym!</p>
<p>As I said earlier, the fact that I not only lift weights, but bear some extra weight:), is helpful.</p>