Love Your Bones

By Vanessa Billingsley, Fountain of You Wellness Writer

Our bones are alive. They are constantly growing, changing and renewing themselves. At least they should be. As our sex hormones become depleted due to age, lifestyle, and the environment, our bones suffer the consequences. 50% of American women over the age of 50 are living with osteoporosis, literally meaning “porous bones.” Osteoporosis is to blame for over 300,000 broken hips each year and leaves many men and women extremely fragile. Between 14% and 36% of elderly patients suffering a hip fracture die within a year of the incident.1 Even worse, the 5 year mortality rate after such a hip fracture is a shocking 81%.2 There are ways, however, to slow, stop and even reverse osteoporosis when the correct measures are taken to ensure bone health. 3 The key lies in our understanding of how our bones regenerate themselves and in taking action to ensure they are doing so.

We do not normally think of our bones as living tissue, but acknowledging this fact is an important step in taking proper care of our skeletal system. On one hand, cells called osteoclasts target “old” bone and dissolve it. During this normal process of resorption, the calcium and other minerals comprising the bone cell are released back into the blood stream for later use. Because bone is being broken down in this fashion, healthy bones experience re-growth as different cells called osteoblasts gather calcium and other nutrients from the blood to form beautiful new bone cells to fill in any “gaps”. We must, therefore, ensure that we are providing the proper tools for hard-working osteoclasts and osteoblasts to perform their respective jobs appropriately. When we are young, eating well, and engaging in weight-bearing exercise, these cells are well-supplied with the sex hormones, minerals, and stimulation they need to stay strong and resilient. Imagine the catastrophe which would occur if the osteoclasts began dissolving bone at a faster rate than the osteoblasts could repair and rebuild. Frighteningly, this scenario is completely possible and is in fact a common cause of osteoporosis.

Estrogen, progesterone, DHEA, and testosterone all play important roles in the health of our bones. Take away these important sex hormones and our bones are in big trouble. We must have all of them in balance in order for our skeletal system to benefit optimally from their presence. For example, a depletion of estrogen causes osteoclasts to break down bone at an alarming rate. A lack of progesterone denies osteoblasts an important growth factor necessary for rebuilding bone. If one or both of these hormones is depleted or out of balance in our bodies, our bones can suffer terrible consequences. In light of this, some women are advised to begin a regimen of synthetic hormones to combat osteoporosis. Women undergoing conventional hormone replacement therapy (HRT) are usually prescribed horse estrogen (Premarin), sometimes in combination with a type of progestin (a synthetic progesterone-like drug). Conventional HRT carries great health risks due to the foreign molecular structure of synthetic and horse hormones, its oral administration, and its lack of individual dosing capabilities. Conversely, bioidentical hormone replacement therapy (BHRT) can be tailored to fit the needs of each woman individually. Bioidentical hormones are exact molecular replicas of the hormones our bodies make on their own.

They provide all of the health benefits our naturally occurring hormones provide, and they can be used long-term with much less risk when prescribed and used properly. They are an ideal treatment for hormone depletion (and therefore osteoporosis), as they are not alien to the body and do not cause the same side-effects of synthetic progestins and horse estrogen.

While some doctors choose to treat osteoporosis with conventional HRT, others choose to prescribe drugs called bisphosphonates like Fosamax, Actonel, Didronel, Boniva, and Reclast. Unfortunately, this can be a dangerous choice of therapy for some. Although bisphosphonates elevate bone density, they are bone hardeners, not bone strengtheners, and they may increase chances of fracture in the long run.4 Bisphosphonates are meant to inhibit osteoclasts from breaking down bone. The problem is that they also inhibit osteoblasts from repairing bone. Since our day to day bone strain causes micro-tears, a perfectly normal phenomenon, an inability to repair bone is a major problem. After years’ worth of unrepaired micro-tears due to bisphosphonate use, our bones can become very susceptible to fracture. Bisphosphonates also remain in bone tissue indefinitely.5 Given these and other adverse side-effects, anti-aging physicians choose BHRT in combination with nutritional support as the favorable treatment for osteoporosis. It is the perfect way to stimulate the body to renew bone as hormones return to optimal levels.

It is important to include bone density scans as part of an age management program. Please call Fountain of You for an assessment of your bone health.

(1) Aharonoff, G.B., Koval, K.J., Skovron, M.L., & Zuckerman, J.D. (1997). Hip fractures in the elderly: predictors of one year mortality. journal of orthopaedic trauma, 11(3), 162-165.

(2) Arnander, M., Hopkins, J., & Khaleel, A. (2007). Analysis of mortality after hip fracture: data from a 5 year patient cohort. Injury Extra, 38(4), 131.

(3) Wright, J.V., & Lenard, L. (2010). Stay young and sexy with bio-identical hormone replacement. Petaluma, Ca: Smart Publications.

(4) Ott, S. (2004). New treatments for brittle bones. Annals of Internal Medicine, 141, 406-407.

(5) Ott, S.M. (2005). Long-term safety of bisphosphonates. Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism, 90, 1897-1899.