Hello.....

I am new to this board and would like to post this question to all. I am 45 and Male and diagnosed with Osteoperosis. I have had shoulder & neck pain and thought it was my Gallbladder which was identified with stones. After surgery my aches didn't go away. So I saw a pain doctor who looked at my xrays and told me to get on Fosomax, Calcium & Vitamin D.
Started the Fosomax 70mg weekly one time and my stomach now feels like it's always upset. It could be from being 5 days out of surgery for gallbladder removal but maybe not. I will just see if this goes away and take 100% daily requirement Calcium & Vitamin D.
Any comments would be appreciated about these symptoms and course of treatment.
Best to all!

Don

calcium supplements alone are not enough once you are diagnosed with osteoperosis...as for your being on fosamax from the research i have done on this drug you should know that it has been trialed for use only by post menopausal women..so i take that to mean that no trial has been done to establish the drugs safety or effectiveness for men..you mite want to call the manufacturer merck to see what they have to say about it 800-672-6372..also you mite want to bring this to your perscribing physicians attention...there is a osteoperosis diet that im sure you can get a copy of from your dr..also weight bearing exercise helps......i have seen reports on these boards that some people had to stop using fosamax because of abdominal problems

Thank you for your timely reply to my posts. I will look into this further with my internist or orthepedic doctor. I will take Calcium & Vitamin D anyway which can't hurt.
Best!
Don

Magnesium is also a vital component in the bone building process, but it is often neglected.

You should be able to get adequate Vitamin D if you have normal cholesterol levels (180-240 mg/dl) and get out in the sun frequently (vitamin D is manufactured in the skin from sunlight and cholesterol). Cod liver oil is an excellent source of Vitamin D and the essential fatty acid Omege 3 (EPA and DHA).

You mentioned gall bladder problems. What is your cholesterol level? The reason I ask is that people with gall bladder problems or lack of a gall bladder often have unacceptably low levels of cholesterol. Contrary to all of the medical and media hype, low cholesterol levels can have serious negative health consequences just like excessively high levels. Studies have shown that your overall risk of mortality is greater with an abnormally low cholesterol level than with an abnormally high cholesterol level.

Over 50% of bone structure is protein, so if you aren't eating adequate levels of the nine essential amino acids (protein) like that found in animal products, it will be difficult to build new bone.

Dark green leafy vegetables are an excellent source of both calcium and magnesium and other essential minerals.

Whole grain products and soy contain relatively high levels of phytic acid which can inhibit mineral absorption, especially calcium. You may want to limit your intake of those foods.

If you are going to supplement with magnesium (400-600 mg/day is recommended) then it would be better to use an amino acid bound (chelated) magnesium such as magnesium citrate which is much more easily absorbed than magnesium oxide (commonly found in multi-vitamins).

I would research Fosamx thoroughly if you are going to continue with this treatment approach. Here is some info on Fosamax if you are interested: http://www.mercola.com/2000/aug/20/fosamax_liver.htm

Alan

http://www.geocities.com/tbkfitness/osteo.html provides some useful info on preventing osteoperosis.

Alan

arkie6..i found that article very interesting..do you have any knowledge about the drug "evista" which is also used to treat bone loss...

for arkie6.everything i read says that healthy cholesterol is anything below 200...i want to learn more about your statement that helathy total cholesterol is 180-240..where can i find documentation to substantiate this..my husbands cholesterol is 145 ..and he is on no medications at all..thanks

I have been taking Evista for about three weeks. I have experiences awful hot flashes at nigt keeping me awake for hours. then last week I developed the most severe leg pains. o actually yelped when I had to bend my legs. I thought I must have pulled muscle. Then it hit me...the Evista. This site may have saved my life as I did not know I should not take certain pain relivers. I also did not know that Evista can cause BLOOD CLOTS. Maybe that is why my legs hurt so bad. I am calling the doctor tomorrow and stopping the Evista now!

------------------
bobcat

what are the pain relievers that women on evista shouldnt take......also where did you get your info..thanx

i saw my dr this morning and asked her if there were any otc pain relievers that i should not take because i was on evista and her answer was no

Originally posted by bjg:
for arkie6.everything i read says that healthy cholesterol is anything below 200...
If everything you read has been massaged to fit the current government guidelines for cholesterol levels, then yes, everything you read will say keep cholesterol below 200 mg/dl. If you will look a little deeper, you will see that high cholesterol levels are defined as >240 mg/dl and borderline high cholesterol levels are defined as 200-240 mg/dl. These borderline levels are only of concern if you have other risk factors for heart disease, even then, the relative risk is low. On the other hand, low cholesterol levels place you at increased risk of cancer. In fact, your overall risk of mortality is greater with a cholesterol level of 150 than one of 250. While you may be more likely to die from heart disease with a cholesterol level of 250, you are more likely to die from other causes such as cancer or suicide with a low cholesterol level.

Here is an interesting article titled "The Soft Science of Dietary Fat" and how the current cholesterol guidlines came to be. The current guidelines have more to do with politics than science. Here is the link: http://www.second-opinions.co.uk/taubes.html The last three paragraphs of that link discuss how the magic number of "200 mg/dl" came to be. And here is a relevant excerpt from the rather long article "Jacobs reported his results to NHLBI, which in 1990 hosted a conference to discuss the issue, bringing together researchers from 19 studies around the world. The data were consistent: When investigators tracked all deaths, instead of just heart disease deaths, the cholesterol curves were U-shaped for men and flat for women. In other words, men with cholesterol levels above 240 mg/dl tended to die prematurely from heart disease. But below 160 mg/dl, the men tended to die prematurely from cancer, respiratory and digestive diseases, and trauma. As for women, if anything, the higher their cholesterol, the longer they lived."

i want to learn more about your statement that healthy total cholesterol is 180-240..where can i find documentation to substantiate this..
Actually, the healthly levels are 160-240 as the above link shows. I mis-typed the 180 earlier.

my husbands cholesterol is 145 ..and he is on no medications at all..thanks
Does he have his gall bladder? Low cholesterol levels are a symptom of gall bladder removal since the bile released by the gall bladder is necessary for absorption of the fat used to synthesize cholesterol in the liver. Does he follow a vegan or vegetarian or otherwise very low saturated fat diet? That could also contribute to an abnormally low cholesterol level since animal fats provide many of the building blocks necessary for cholesterol synthesis. Hyperthyroidism can also be a factor in low cholesterol levels just like the opposite condition, hypothyroidism, can be a factor in high cholesterol levels.

By the way, hyperthyroidism places you at increased risk for osteoporosis also. And as previously mentioned, cholesterol is the building block for vitamin D synthesis in the skin. Just wanted to keep the subject matter slightly on-topic.

Alan

for alan..yes no my husband is not vegetarian he does have his gallbladder..can you tell me more about the symptoms of hyperthyroidism in men..thanx

back to the original post, but could taking calcium for osteoporosis lead to calcium deposits thereby further aggravating any signs of osteoarthritic pain by the formation of bone spurs?

I have just a few things to say about the calcitonin hormone. First of all, it is released when calcium blood levels are high. The thyroid gland releases calcitonin into the blood stream, which in turn signals to osteoblasts (ostes = bone, blast = form) to lay down the calcium into the bone matrix. Once the levels of calcium in the blood have diminished, the calcitonin is no longer produced.

The thing that eats up your bones is the LACK of calcium in the blood stream. If there isn't enough calcium to perform normal body functions, your parathyroid gland (located within the thyroid gland) releases PTH (parathyroid hormone) into the blood stream. PTH is what sends the signal to your osteoclasts (osteo = bone, clast = break) to break down the bone matrix for calcium. Once the calcium levels have reached an adequate level, PTH is no longer released, and the osteoclasts cease to eat at your bones.

The only thing that any of these nifty "bone building" medications do, is to mimic calcitonin. It makes your body think that you always have too much calcium in your blood, so it is constantly trying to pour calcium into your bones. The only problem is, sometimes, people don't take in enough calcium to make up for this constant need. Also, one can never forget the need for Vitamin D while taking in Calcium. It is the primary absorber, it makes the mineral much, much more soluble to the body. MAKE SURE YOU ARE TAKING VITAMIN D WITH YOUR CALCIUM!!!

One common concern I have noticed is bone spurs. As far as I know, bone spurs do form from a surplus of calcium...but almost exclusivley in people who are not oseoporotic. Osteporosis is a lack of calcium. Pure and simple. Some people's bodies use much more calcium than others, they are at risk of osteoporosis. From what I know, if one takes calcium suppliments to offset osteoporosis, the chances are slim to none that they will develop bone deformities as a result of the increased calcium supply. I hope that helped some. Once again, this is all based on what I have learned, and read. I am not a doctor yet, so please consult with a medical professional before acting on any of the aforementioned information.

If anybody has any other questions, feel free to mail me at petrimd@hotmail.com.

I am a pre-med student, and my mother has osteopenia, so I have done all sorts of research on the subject. She is on Fosamax, and has been experiencing extreme lower back pain. I am on a mission to find out why.

Good luck!

[This message has been edited by Speedemon0202 (edited 07-23-2002).]

speedemon0202: Thanks for your reply on caclium and bone spurs. I have been looking for an answer to this question but could not find one. Did your research come from the internet, or from medical journals and other printed publications?

Extreme lower back pain in women could also be signs of Osteoarthritis. Has she gotten any diagnositic testing done? My mom has severe spinal stenosis due to osteophytic growth in the faceted joints and the neurosurgeon has recommendend a lumbar laminectomy as the most effective way to deal with the problem (and not just relieve pain as NSAIDS do.) Monitor her pain levels very closely and document. My mom's pain came all within a span of 2 months from first being an active healthy individual in all outward appearances to becoming one step away from being bed ridden, even with NSAIDS.

I just posted a message regarding OsteoPure....i think this would be good information for reversing osteoporosis.
the message is entitled: this can help with low bone density, i posted it on 8/2/02

it claims to re-grow bone, and i've had good results with it. hope maybe it can work for you too!!! good luck!

regards, kristy