Frequently Asked Bone Health Questions

Quick Links to Answers:

1. How do I know a natural approach will help me?
2. I took calcium and vitamin D and followed a healthy diet and lifestyle, but I got osteoporosis anyway. Can the Personal Program help me?
3. Why does pH balance matter, and what is the alkaline diet?
4. What are the risks of bone density drugs (bisphosphonates)?
5. My doctor recommended a bone density drug, but I’m scared of the side effects. What should I do?
6. How long does the Personal Program take to work? How long do I have to be on it?
7. How will I know my bones are getting stronger?
8. Does low bone density cause fractures?
9. If I stop bone breakdown will that prevent fractures?
10. My fracture risk is low. Why should I pay attention to my bone health?
11. My fracture risk is high. Will the Personal Program help me?
12. I’m terrified of fracturing a hip. Is there anything I can do to reduce my risk?
13. Do I need to take other supplements like calcium while on the Personal Program?
14. Are the dietary and lifestyle guidelines difficult to follow?
15. Will my doctor approve of the Personal Program for Better Bones?
16. I’m on a prescription drug. Will the Personal Program for Better Bones interact with my prescription?
17. I’ve read that there are 20 nutrients required for bone health, but the Personal Program includes 16 of them. What are the other four?
18. I recently heard about a study linking folic acid and vitamin B12 to cancer incidence. What can you tell me about this study?

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1. How do I know that a natural approach will help me?

The wonderful thing about a natural approach to bone health is that it can help you regardless of your age or the current state of your bones. 96% of women who come to our Center are helped exclusively with a natural approach. About 4% — the women with the greatest number of risk factors, very severe bone loss, and complicating medical factors — also benefit from temporary use of bone density drugs in conjunction with natural bone support. We never recommend bone density drugs without support to bone-building cells because bone density is only one component of bone strength. Bone strength also depends on the quality of the bone, and the activity of bone-building cells is vital for improving bone quality.

Because nutritional support is a key component of the Personal Program, women with chronic digestive issues should work to resolve those issues to get the most from their Program. Women with extreme bone loss or a history of low-trauma fracture should be evaluated for underlying medical conditions that cause osteoporosis, in conjunction with their Program.

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2. I took calcium and vitamin D and followed a healthy diet and lifestyle, but I got osteoporosis anyway. Can the Personal Program help me?

Yes. The Personal Program goes beyond what most women consider a healthy diet and lifestyle because it balances your pH level and supplies 16 of the key bone-building nutrients that most women lack in optimum amounts — including calcium and vitamin D. Our nutrients are the highest quality and in their most bioavailable forms, and they are further unique in that they were specifically designed to support proper pH balance. Additionally, most women we see are surprised by the range of lifestyle factors that affect their bones — not only exercise but stress levels, exposure to toxins, and more. Our lifestyle guide will help you identify these lesser known opportunities for improving your bone health.

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3. Why does pH balance matter and what is the alkaline diet?

Your body functions best within a narrow range of pH, which is slightly alkaline. It’s your bones’ responsibility to maintain that alkaline balance by storing and donating alkalizing mineral compounds (like calcium citrates and carbonates). Many of the body’s processes, including energy production and digestion of certain foods, produce acid that must be buffered by these alkalizing mineral compounds. From an evolutionary perspective, it’s far more important to prevent systemic acidosis than to maintain bone strength, so your bones continue to donate their alkalizing mineral compounds even at the expense of building and repairing bone.

By avoiding foods that create acid and eating more foods that have an alkalizing effect on the body, you can quickly and directly reduce the demands on your bones. When fewer resources are diverted to maintaining pH balance, your bones are more able to build, repair, and strengthen.

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4. What are the risks of bone density drugs (bisphosphonates)?

Bone density drugs (bisphosphonates) bring premature death to the cells that break down bone and deposit a long-lasting bisphosphonate compound in the bone, giving it the appearance of greater density. These drugs halt bone breakdown, but do not build new bone. In fact, they reduce new bone formation. Long-term use of these drugs (over 1 year) has been shown to halt activity of bone-building cells, which stands to reason since bone breakdown is necessary for new bone formation. This sometimes results in dense bones that are of poor quality and too brittle to withstand everyday activities. These drugs also carry the risk of several side effects, including ulcers of the esophagus, upper GI irritation, irregular heartbeat, low blood calcium, fracture of the femur, joint, bone or muscle pain, jaw bone decay, and increased parathyroid hormone.

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5. My doctor recommended a bone density drug, but I’m scared of the side effects. What should I do?

Have an honest discussion with your doctor. Unfortunately there is a general lack of awareness about natural approaches to bone health in the medical community, but he or she should understand your concerns. We’ve long believed that women should have an active role in making decisions about their health care, and when they have the right knowledge and tools they have an amazing ability to heal themselves. Taking a drug you’re not comfortable with doesn’t make sense when alternatives exist.

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6. How long does the Personal Program take to work? How long do I have to be on it?

Because bone health is built every day, the Personal Program starts to help immediately. But bone strength is built in increments and it will take time for a noticeable improvement. Within the first 30-60 days of the Program, most women will replenish their key bone-building nutrients and make significant progress towards optimizing their pH level and balancing their overall bone metabolism. Most importantly, you’ll learn everything you need to know to continue strengthening your bones, regardless of whether you remain a Member of the Personal Program.

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7. How will I know my bones are getting stronger?

Like you can’t feel your bones become weak, you won’t feel them getting stronger. However, you can measure your progress in other ways. A urine marker of bone breakdown, such as the NTx test, is an effective but lesser-known test that measures the excretion of a specific molecule that indicates the rate of bone breakdown. You can also measure your daily pH level, which is an indication of the level of demands on your bones’ mineral reserves. Bone mineral density tests are the most commonly used option for monitoring bone health, but it’s important to understand their limitations. Bone density only roughly correlates with bone strength — some women have dense bones that are very brittle. Finally, a general increase in energy, enhanced fitness, and muscle strength can be correlated with greater bone health.

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8. Does low bone density cause fractures?

Low bone density alone does not cause fractures. Your bones have plenty of surplus bone mass to allow for loss of bone density without necessarily causing fracture. For example research shows that a severely osteoporotic vertebra with only 50% of its normal amount of bone is still architecturally strong enough to withstand five times its normal strain load. Low bone density is more likely to contribute to a fracture when the bone is also of poor quality. Bone quality depends on the self-repair mechanism of bone. In healthy bone, microfractures are continuously being repaired, old bone is removed, and stronger bone is formed in its place. Thin bone combined with poor bone self-repair is most likely to contribute to fracture.

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9. If I stop bone breakdown will that prevent fractures?

Halting bone breakdown allows minerals to accumulate in the bone, which leads to greater bone density. However, bone density is only roughly correlated with bones’ resistance to fracture. Strong bones are sufficiently dense and flexible to withstand forces and flexion. They remain this way by continuously breaking down old bone and replacing it with new, strong bone. In a healthy skeleton, at any given moment there are about one million sites where small segments of old bone are being dissolved and new bone is being laid in its place. If you stop bone breakdown, you halt bone repair, renewal, and formation. This reduces the overall quality of the bone, and may increase the risk of fracture rather than reduce it.

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10. My fracture risk is low. Why should I pay attention to my bone health?

Many of our patients are relieved to learn their fracture risk is low. And this is good news, because it’s always easier to maintain bone than heal it after an imbalance has developed. A few simple things you do now can have lifelong benefits for your bone health. Besides, there is no crystal ball for fractures: some women with low fracture risk will break a bone. Don’t wait for your fracture risk to increase when you have such a great opportunity to establish healthy bones now. Also remember that all the natural steps you can take for your bone health are good for your entire body — so you have nothing to lose!

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11. My fracture risk is high. Will the Personal Program help me?

Women with high fracture risk often feel like a broken bone is inevitable. Happily, this is not so! Remember that risk factors increase the chance that you will experience an event, but they do not cause that event to occur. You may not be able to change some of your risk factors, like your age or family history of fracture, but you can often influence your outcomes. Taking control of the factors you can influence, like nutritional status, pH balance and lifestyle, is enough for most women to tip the scale in their favor.

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12. I’m terrified of fracturing a hip. Is there anything I can do to reduce my risk?

There’s no doubt that hip fractures are frightening. But allowing that fear to be the basis of decisions about your bone health doesn’t serve your body well. And the truth is there’s a lot you can do to prevent fractures of all types, including hip fractures. The key is to focus on the quality of your bones, not just their density. Obtaining adequate levels of all key bone nutrients is very protective. Physical activity is especially important for the prevention of hip fractures because exercise helps you maintain mobility and balance as you age (as well as strengthening your bones). Contrary to rumor, 90% of hip fractures happen because of a fall, not the other way around. Keeping your floor clear of clutter and wearing proper footwear can help prevent falls, which will prevent hip fractures. Supporting the natural self-repair mechanisms that maintain strong, resilient bone will protect you in case you do fall.

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13. Do I need to take other supplements like calcium while on the Personal Program?

The Personal Program for Better Bones includes complete nutrition for women with bone health concerns. Our Better Bones Basics and Better Bones Builder replace the multivitamin, calcium, vitamin D and essential fatty acid supplements for almost all women, and are carefully balanced for optimal bone health. They are further unique in that they are designed specifically to be alkalizing to the body. Most women do not need to take additional supplements, although we sometimes recommend higher doses of vitamin D and/or essential fatty acids depending on your individual circumstances. We recommend you start with the supplements in your Starter Phase and see how you feel. If you have intractable symptoms or specific concerns, a Nurse-Educator can help customize your Program to meet your needs.

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14. Are the dietary and lifestyle guidelines difficult to follow?

We understand how hard it can be to change habits, and we’ve designed our lifestyle and dietary guidelines to be as easy to follow as possible. Most women have many opportunities for improving their bone health, and the list of changes can seem overwhelming. But don’t feel like you have to do everything at once. Choose a few simple changes that seem easiest to you and commit yourself to them. The wonderful thing about bone health is that any single thing you do can have a positive impact on your bones over time. Every woman’s path to better bones will be different, which is why we help you choose the approach that works best for you.

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15. Will my doctor approve of the Personal Program for Better Bones?

Your healthcare practitioner should be pleased with any steps you take to improve your bone health. The Personal Program was developed to meet the needs of patients at our healthcare clinic, and incorporates more than 25 years of scientific research. We encourage you to discuss the steps you’re taking with your healthcare practitioner. There is also a wealth of resources and references on our website if he or she would like more information on the scientific basis for the Program.

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16. I’m on a prescription drug. Will the Personal Program for Better Bones interact with my prescription?

If you are taking anticoagulants (“blood thinners”), such as warfarin (Coumadin®) or heparin; or antiplatelet agents such as clopidogrel (Plavix®), we do suggest that you consult with your healthcare provider before using the Personal Program for Better Bones. While there have been no adverse interactions known to date between our Better Bones supplements and prescription drugs, the Personal Program for Better Bones does include vitamin K and omega-3 fatty acids, which have the potential to interfere with the above-listed medications.

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17. I’ve read that there are 20 nutrients required for bone health, but the Personal Program includes 16 of them. What are the other four?

The Personal Program includes balanced amounts of 16 of the 20 essential bone-building nutrients. The remaining four are phosphorus, protein, fluoride and silica. Most women get enough — or too much — phosphorus, protein and fluoride in their diets already, so supplementation of these is neither beneficial nor wise. Some women could benefit from supplemental silica, which is available in liquid form only. If you are concerned about your silica level give us a call and we’ll help you make sure you’re getting enough.

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18. I recently heard about a study linking folic acid and vitamin B12 to cancer incidence. What can you tell me about this study?

The recent study quoted by news sources as suggesting that there’s a link between vitamin B and cancer is being questioned by nutrition scientists and industry leaders for validity, protocol, and its results. It is important to note that all of the participants in the study had congestive heart failure due to coronary artery disease, and many were current or former smokers.

Women to Women’s Better Bones Basics offer a much lower dose than those in the study:

• Folic Acid — Subjects in the study were given 100% more folic acid than the amount of folic acid in our Better Bones Basics
• Vitamin B12 — Subjects in the study were given 100% more B12 than the amount in our Better Bones Basics

Well-respected industry leaders who commented on this study, including Dr. Andrew Shao, PhD, Vice President of Scientific and Regulatory Affairs for the Council for Responsible Nutrition, view the linkage between folic acid and cancer as an inaccurate interpretation of the data. Dr. Shao observed:

“The real headline of this study should read be that smoking increases the risk of lung cancer — the study found that a total of 94 percent of the subjects who developed lung cancer were either current or former smokers. For years, the vast body of scientific evidence has shown that individuals who have smoked at any point in their lives are at a significantly increased risk of developing lung cancer. Most health experts would agree that the number one way to prevent lung cancer is to abstain from smoking.”

You can read the complete text of Dr. Shao’s response to the Vitamin B study, at http://www.crnusa.org/prpdfs/CRNPR09_Responds_to_B_Vitamin_Study_111709.pdf

We recommend that women taking our Better Bones Basics do not use additional supplements, particularly additional B vitamins, as the Better Bones Basics already offers safe, optimal levels of these vitamins.