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Media Releases
Calcium, Vitamin D Use Questioned in People with History of Fractures
Columbia, Mo. (May 19, 2005) - If you are an elderly person with osteoporosis, chances are you've been told to drink your milk and take your calcium supplements. Well, you can drink your milk religiously and take your calcium and vitamin D supplements diligently, but it might not do you a whole lot of good after all, according to a new study published in the medical journal The Lancet.
Calcium and vitamin D supplements may not help prevent bone fractures in older people with osteoporosis or in those who have already suffered a fracture, the report states. Calcium and vitamin D supplements have been traditionally recommended to ward off future fractures in elderly people who have had a broken bone in the past.
The study did not discuss the efficacy of vitamin D and calcium supplements as primary prevention, that is, in people who have never had a fracture or those who have not been diagnosed with osteoporosis.
Researchers compared two groups of people over 70 years of age who had a broken bone in the last 10 years. Participants, half of whom took vitamin D and calcium and half of whom didn't, were tracked for two to five years. The incidence of fractures did not differ between those taking supplements and those who weren't. In other words, people taking the supplements were not less likely to break a bone than those not taking them.
The news came out in the eve of May 1, the beginning of National Arthritis/Osteoporosis Month, possibly creating confusion among patients.
Here are some story ideas that might give your audience insight about the issue:
What do these findings do to the conventional wisdom that vitamin D and Calcium can preserve your bones?
What are some alternative therapies other than vitamin D and calcium for people who have osteoporosis and have suffered fractures?
Could these findings send the wrong message? Should physicians wait cautiously before they take their patients off these supplements?
Should younger patients who've never had a fracture continue to take these supplements?
For more comments and reactions to the above story, please contact:
Beth Richards, program manager for the Missouri Arthritis and Osteoporosis Program, (573) 522-2879, email: Beth.Richards@dhss.mo.gov
ARTHRITIS AND OSTEOPOROSIS PRIMER:
Osteoporosis affects mainly older, post-menopausal women, but it can develop in younger women and men as well. Groups at risk for early-onset osteoporosis include women who have undergone premature menopause and lost their body's estrogen supply because of surgery or medication, as well as people with chronic illnesses such as emphysema, asthma, or lupus, who are on long-term corticosteroid therapy.
According to the Surgeon General's office, the 1.5 million osteoporotic fractures in the United States each year lead to more than half a million hospitalizations, more than 800,000 emergency room visits, more than 2,600,000 physician office visits, and the placement of nearly 180,000 individuals into nursing homes. Caring for these fractures is expensive. Studies show that annual direct care expenditures for osteoporotic fractures range from $12 to $18 billion per year.
Arthritis is the leading cause of physical disability in the United States costing the U.S. economy more than $86 billion annually. Yet the disease remains poorly understood. Contrary to popular belief, arthritis is neither "just aches and pains" nor "an old person's disease." It is an umbrella term for more than a 100 conditions that affect more than 70 million people.
For more information about MARRTC and its projects, log on to www.marrtc.org
As part of the MU Health Communication Research Center (HCRC), MARRTC's mission is to become a national leader in the areas of disability management and communication, improve the quality of life and promote independent living among people who have arthritis and arthritic conditions. MARRTC's core message is "Disability is everyone's issue."
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