Discuss the choices of diet and drugs for the treatment and prevention of osteoporosis in women

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

To maximize bone mass, the diet must deliver an adequate supply of calcium during the first three decades of life. Children and teens who consume milk products and get enough calcium have denser bones than those with inadequate intakes. With little or no calcium from the diet, the body must depend on bone to supply calcium to the blood— bone mass diminishes, and bones lose their density and strength. When people reach the bone-losing years of middle age, those who formed dense bones during their youth have the advantage. They simply have more bone starting out and can lose more before suffering ill effects.

Estrogen therapy may help some women prevent further bone loss and reduce the incidence of fractures. Because estrogen therapy may increase the risks for breast cancer, women must carefully weigh any potential benefits against the possible dangers. A combination of drugs or of hormone replacement and a drug may be most beneficial. Several drug therapies have been developed to inhibit bone loss and enhance bone formation. The FDA has approved the following drugs to prevent or treat osteoporosis: biophosphates, calcitonin, estrogens, estrogen antagonists, and parathyroid hormone.

Some women who choose not to use estrogen therapy turn to soy as an alternative treatment. Interestingly, the phytochemicals commonly found in soy mimic the actions of estrogen in the body. Research results have been mixed and controversial, but overall seem to indicate a lack of benefit for soy and its phytochemicals in helping to prevent the rapid bone losses of the menopause years.