The Natural Approach to Osteoporosis: Part 2
Calcium Cofactors
The proper approach to rebuilding bone is not to overload the system with too much of one element, calcium, but to add other elements that are powerful cofactors in the absorption of calcium. These cofactors will both help absorb calcium and to channel it back into the bone mass, contributing to actually rebuilding bone density.
The three most important cofactors are vitamins A, D, and K2.
Anyone reading this is aware that vitamin D is essential for bone health, and since I have written copious amounts of material on vitamin D, I will not spend time on that subject here.
Here is how the body works to build bone: vitamin A breaks down old bone matter, vitamin D rebuilds it into new bone matter, and vitamin K2 shuttles it into the skeletal structure.
Now one reason that many people are afraid of vitamin A is because it has been linked to causing osteoporosis. And this idea is prevalent only because of bad science (perhaps even deliberate, given the profits to be made selling drugs for osteoporosis). Indeed, when rats were given lots of vitamin A they did develop osteoporosis. But they were given no vitamin D and no vitamin K.
Remember, that the primary (almost exclusive) source of vitamin A from the diet is derived from eating the liver of animals or fish. And, in the case of animal liver, if the animal ate grass there would also be vitamin K along with the vitamin D found in the liver. In the case of fish, vitamin K is found in the body of the fish (along with A and D found in their livers).
So, of course giving test animals one isolated vitamin, without the essential cofactors that would be found in nature, would lead to lopsided results.
(Science that confirms the importance of vitamin A for bone health: “In conclusion, we suggest that both vitamin A and provitamin A may be potential bone-protecting agents, and more studies are warranted to support this hypothesis”.)
By now everyone knows that vitamin K2 is required for healthy bones and teeth, not to mention a host of other functions (see: “Top 6 Benefits of Vitamin K2”), so I will skip going into detail on this critical nutrient. (Though I will suggest using our Quick K2 liquid product which has an advantage over capsules by helping to reduce cavity formation in the teeth.)
Other Important Cofactors
Boron, also used to treat arthritis, has been shown to protect against prostate cancer, and is helpful for regulating estrogen in women and testosterone in men (3 mg per day). (We add boron to our Mineral Mix product and also in NutriPods for Men and Women.) (For more on the benefits of boron see this study called Nothing Boring About Boron.)
To quote one study: “considering a dietary supplementation of 3 mg/day of boron (alone or with other nutrients); this supplementation is demonstrably useful to support bone health (in order to prevent and maintain adequate bone mineral density), also considering the daily dose of 3 mg is much lower than the Upper Level indicated by EFSA in the daily dose of 10 mg.”
Silica is available in a few different forms, but currently I would recommend it in the form of aqueous extract of bamboo or horsetail, for the purposes of bone rebuilding. Silica also keeps your arteries flexible, skin elastic, and strengthens hair, teeth and nails. While horsetail silica is valuable, the advantage of bamboo-sourced silica is that it has seven times more silica in it, such that one capsule of a bamboo silica product is equal to seven caps of a horsetail extract product.
(For more on the subject see this earlier newsletter; “10 Reasons You Need Silica”.)
“Accumulating evidence over the last 30 years strongly suggest that dietary silicon is beneficial to bone and connective tissue health and we recently reported strong positive associations between dietary Si intake and bone mineral density in US and UK cohorts.” (Source)
Zinc is another necessary cofactor for bone density (sufficient amounts being found in our NutriPods or any good multivitamin product, and in our Mineral Mix, which is designed to support bone density).
This was confirmed in a study from as recently as 2021: “Regarding daily zinc intake, a high proportion of the population, more than 20%, seems to be at risk of having inadequate zinc intake. The literature suggests that an insufficient zinc intake (less than 3 mg/day) could be a risk factor for fractures and for development of osteopenia and osteoporosis. Zinc supplementation (40-50 g/day) could have beneficial effects on bone health in terms of maintaining bone mineral density and faster healing in the event of fractures, with even better results in situations of reduced intake of zinc through food.”
When we see how these other minerals are also critical to maintain bone health, it becomes obvious how ridiculous it is to suggest, as many doctors do, that you take your isolated calcium, maybe with a little vitamin D, on an empty stomach, before bed.
Calcium found in food will exist with countless other elements (there are 70 to 90 trace minerals alone in topsoil), and if we know that vitamins A, D, and K, along with boron, magnesium, silica, and zinc, all are required for proper calcium absorption, then it stands to reason that many other dietary factors may also be important to fully rebuild bone density.
So, take your calcium supplement with a meal, in a divided dose (250 mg at each of two meals is reasonable: the body cannot absorb anything more than 500 mg of calcium at once, so if you are using higher amounts, do not take more than 500 mg at one meal.) And ensure you are also getting those other important cofactors.
Strontium is one more cofactor, less well known than the other minerals just discussed, and one I usually only recommend for serious conditions.
Most of the science you will find on the subject will refer to studies using Strontium ranelate, which is a synthetic, prescribed form of strontium. Following the link in the last sentence will illustrate that it has a very good track record for increasing bone density. However, since “strontium ranelate is associated with a small increased risk of blood clots”, I would suggest that people choose a natural version of strontium (the most common form being strontium citrate which is totally safe (and has the additional benefit of protecting us against radioactive strontium).
The usual dose is about 300 mg taken once or twice daily, but the trick is it has to be taken away from calcium supplements.
Dairy Products
As my regular readers know, I am an advocate of the Blood Type Diet, so I tend to believe that a moderate amount of dairy products are okay for blood types AB, and B, and not so good for other blood types. That being said, dairy products are most digestible when they are fermented and raw (and organic). Raw dairy products are mostly illegal, though you can find organic cheeses that are made from raw milk (at least in Canada).
I will point out here that any links between calcium and heart disease, and stroke, applies only to calcium supplements and not to calcium intake derived from food.
However, in the book Got Milked?: What You Don’t Know About Dairy and the Truth About Calcium, by Alissa Hamilton, it is pointed out that milk is not essential for our well being, and indeed may be doing damage to our health. She gathers research questioning the idea that milk builds healthy bodies, and examines the “calcium paradox”. This paradox, acknowledged by the World Health Organization, shows that nations with the highest dairy consumption have the highest rates of bone fractures. She also goes into detail about the dairy lobby and its pernicious influence on government dietary recommendations.
Dr. Colin Campbell (author of “The China Study”), had this to say (reported in Discover Magazine, Aug. 2000): “The more calcium people consumed, the more susceptible they seemed to be to hip fractures. People in those countries that consume the highest levels of dairy foods (North American and northern European nations) take in two or three times more calcium yet break two or three times more bones than people with the lowest calcium intake (Asians and Africans)…Most Chinese were getting their calcium from vegetables and fruits alone. Although they got less than half the calcium recommended by the USDA, their bones seemed healthy. Among women over 50, the hip fracture rate appeared to be one fifth as high as Western nations.”
A 2014 study reported in the journal BMJ, “found that consuming more milk was linked to greater risk of bone fractures and to earlier mortality. Meanwhile, cheese, yogurt, and other fermented products appeared to be “safe.” (Source)
Next time, in the final post of this series, we will look at those foods with a good scientific track record for helping to prevent osteoporosis.
(Author: All newsletters and blogs are written by Ken Peters who has worked as a nutritional consultant for the last 30 years, and as product designer for NutriStart for the last 25 years. He has also authored two books – Health Secrets Vol. 1&2. He may be reached at: kenpetersconsulting@gmail.com)