Hello everyone, this is what my husband and I decided about the bones saved by the medicine. Yes, the drug is used to keep our bones and might not be as good as we would like them to be. But I think they will last for a long time. Have you seen people dugged out bones from many hundreds of years ago(I am sure those bones are much older than ours)? They look ok to me. All we need is to keep our 'old' bones 20. 30 or 40 years from now. I think we should not worry so much, what do you think?
Two 1998 studies (6,7) said Fosamax prevents bone loss. It is interesting to note that Merck, the manufacturer of Fosamax, funded both of these studies and both appeared in 2 well respected medical journals the same week. Many people in the know consider Fosamax to be a metabolic poison that does absolutely nothing to address the cause of osteoporosis.
Dr. John Lee is the physician who wrote "What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About PRE Menopause". He is very strongly opposed to the use of Fosamax.
Fosamax is in the same chemical class (phosphonate) as the chemicals used in the cleaners which remove soap scum from your bath tub. It is a metabolic poison that actually kills the osteoclasts. These are the cells which remove your bone so your osteoblasts can actually rebuild your bones.
It is quite clear that if you kill those cells, your bones will get denser. What these studies do not show is that a few years later, the bone actually becomes weaker even though it is more dense.
This is because bones are dynamic structures and require the removal and REPLACEMENT of new bone to stay strong. Fosamax does NOT build ANY new bone. Once on a bisphosponate, it is not possible to build bone naturally through weight bearing exercise since osteoclast cells are nonfunctioning. Merk doesn't tell us that in their commercials for Fosamax and the manufacturers of Boniva and Actonel also conveniently omit that very important piece of information. In a new commercial, Sally Fields is shown lifiting weights while praising Boniva, but little does she know, that it's for naught. We should all learn a LOT more about these drugs before taking them.
So, in answer to your question suggesting that we stop worrying - no, we should definitely worry about bisphosphonate drugs and learn much more about how drug companies perpetuate the myth that so many of us are going to crumple up in a heap of bones without their drugs. It's natural to lose some bone mass, but weight bearing excercises, done daily, is the ONLY proven and safe method of building bone at ANY age. But there's no money in that for the drug companies, is there. Think about it and read all you can about bisphosphonate drugs. My friend is now dead because of Fosamax and he suffered terribly for months.
Last edited by Schupp1832; 06-05-2006 at 05:41 PM.
I propose daily weight bearing and resistance exercises for every major muscle group. Also, eat right by eating fresh fruits and vegetables daily. Calcium supplements are beneficial for most. Cut out caffeine, cigarettes and alcohol. Bisphosphonates will not net healthy bone. Please do some research on this class of drug.
Hi......maybe I have done something really wrong in my life to have developed osteoporosis, but here I am. I am 61 and I have done nothing but dance, ballet, jazz, modern since I was 5 years old. I have never smoked, have not used alcohol for the last 25 years. I eat healthy andf have always taken vitamin supplements. I never have broken a bone. Pulled many a muscle and tendon dancing, but never once thought i would have thin bones. From osteoarthritis and much repitive
motion, I am looking at having my hip resurfaced August 29.
I have been on fosamax for the last year. I am not happy about this but when the orthopedic surgeon saw my xrays and I desperately wanted to have a resurface and not a hip replacement, he would never have said yes but he saw new bone growth! Now I am no doc but what could have caused this new bone growth.....I hate drugs but I am sorry, weight bearing exercises are not the answer for some of us
who have done nothing but that all of their lives. I assume it must be the posion I am taking or pixie dust!!!I need the new joint I will take and do what I have to do for this chance to dance and walk with out pain......Karen
I'm with you, Karen. Having taken calcium for 30 years and exercising vigorously (although not nearly as much as you), I was still dx'd with severe osteoporosis. Six years of Fosamax have brought my spine density to normal with still some weakness in hips.
I get tired of defending Fosamax and may well wind up with severe side affects, but I do not want the dowager's hump and easily broken bones my mom suffered.
Dance/ballet sure seems like weight bearing exercise to me. My personal weight-bearing exercise included jumping rope 20 min. a day for years. Alas, it didn't help.
hypatia, there are weight bearing aspects to many exercises, that doesn't necessarily mean that they'll ensure good bones. Afterall, we're moving our weighty body around, but resistance training is critical for good bones. Walking, for instance, unless done up a steep hill or mountain, isn't really resistance training. Weights, weight bands or lifting anything on a daily basis for over 30 minutes, is most effective in growing bone.
I certainly agree that walking (or swimming for that matter) isn't really resistance training. (I should have mentioned that i have lifted free weights for years.) My point is that for some of us, more is required than weight bearing exercise and calcium.
Well, a good diet is very important too and cutting out caffeine, cigarettes and alcohol. I was speaking with an aquaintance the other day and she said that she was drinking TEN cups of coffee a day and had no idea that it contributed to osteo. Her husband was on Fosamax and had the serious infection that lasted for TWO years! Jaw necrosis, a bisphosphonate side effect, was, no doubt, responsible.
It'd be great if there were a safe drug that actually built bone naturally, but there isn't. Fosamax, Actonel and Boniva actually render it impossible to build bone/add to bone density by doing resistance training. It's quite the conundrum. After seeing what Fosamax did to my sweet friend, I wouldn't touch it with a ten foot pole. I had done research on it when my mother had to be on Prednisone for temperal arteritis, and found, even years ago, that Fosamax was dangerous. But, until my friend died, full of esophageal ulcers and cancer, I hadn't realized just how dangerous.
hi all.......I know we all come to these boards with different histories. I have always thought that weight bearing exercises that load bones is good for bone health. Walking, jogging, tennis, dance, aerobics, tai chi all do this. Resistance training is good for muscles and maintains bone mass. Dance is an excellent exercise for people with osteoporosis because of action of mechanical loading. Your bones and muscles work against gravity and become strong and dense. Now that being said, there are other factors that enter the equation. I pretty much think that lack of estrogen in your body after menopause played a significant role for me.
Dancers are usually thin and muscular with very little body fat. Their bones are extremely strong but they often have joint problems because of repetive movement. This is what happened to me..if i did not have to have a hip resurfacing . Now it has been said that fosamax does not
aid in new bone growth....than is the orthopedic surgeon interpreting the xrays incorrectlywhen he says he sees new bone growth ? He said I have a huge femur and a large shaft so maybe that is due to the many years of dance. The only other thing I would like to add is when I have stood in
a dance studio doing slow waist high kicks front side and back and holding the leg waist high for a count of 16, I would hope this would qualify as resistance exercise!!!I do not think i need a five pound ankle weight to increase the work load.......Karen
Now that being said, there are other factors that enter the equation. I pretty much think that lack of estrogen in your body after menopause played a significant role for me.
Me too!
I DID tke HRT for about 10 years and then we had the "big scare" about HRT on TV..and I quit. At that time my spine had no arthritis or osteoporosis.
It only took 2 years after that for my spine to become a mess.
