Osteoporosis and "The Bone Drug Deception"

Every year tens of millions of prescriptions are given for drugs said to treat and prevent osteoporosis.  They're called "bisphosphonates".  Drugs like Boniva, Fosamax, and Actonel gross nearly $8.3 billion in annual sales, and they're marketed primarily to women.  I'll bet we can all think of at least one person we know taking a bisphosphonate drug on a regular basis.

What is "osteoporosis"?

Osteoporosis is characterized by weak, fragile bones, and will affect nearly 50% of ALL people statistically at some point during their lifetime.

What causes it?

Not enough calcium of course, right!?!...NOPE!  We drink more milk and take more calcium supplements now than ever before, and osteoporosis drug sales have DOUBLED in the last 5 years!  Why?  Because we are not addressing the true cause of this issue...a lack of proper health.  Do any of us really think the body was designed for osteoporosis and fractures??  Of course not!  And what are doctors doing to combat a life's worth of bad choices?..."Take this drug."...Give me a break!

(To learn more about why calcium intake is not the problem, you may want to read The Calcium Lie: What Your Doctor Doesn't Know Could Kill You by Dr. Robert Thompson.)

What exactly are these drugs supposed to do?

Well, it's pretty simple.  They're given to people with decreased bone density for the purpose of restoring healthy bone density and preventing potentially dangerous fractures.  So, doctors will do a bone density scan on a patient called "dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA, formerly DEXA)".  When they see the bone as being osteoporotic, or brittle, they'll usually prescribe some form of a bisphosphonate drug.  This drug will then do 2 things:

1. Abnormally glue calcium to bone in unhealthy patterns
2. Kill osteoclasts (the parts of your bones that kill old bone so new bone can be produced)

You see, there are osteoblasts and osteoclasts.  An easy way to remember what they do is to note the only letters that make them different.  The "B" in osteo"B"lasts stands for "build", because these are the bone cells that build new bone.  The "C" in osteo"C"lasts stands for "cut", and as stated above they are the bone cells that cut away old bone to make way for newer bone to be laid down.

These drugs will give the illusion of thicker bones, when what is left are actually swollen, chaotically disorganized, weaker bones.  This not only won't solve the real problem, but can lead to more fractures in the future.

Are there any side effects to these drugs?

• Severe pain - In 2008, the FDA issued a warning saying, "severe and sometimes incapacitating bone, joint, and/or muscle (musculoskeletal) pain in patients taking bisphosphonates."
• Atrial fibrillation - and the drug they'll give you for this causes...an increase in fractures!
• Arterial plaque formation
• Rupturing of atherosclerotic plaque (causes strokes and heart attacks)
• Rotting jaw bone
• Inflammation to the digestive system (increased risk of ulcers)
• Severe eye inflammation and possible blindness
• Liver damage
• Esophageal cancer
• Renal (kidney) failure
• Skin reactions
• Hypocalcemia (low blood calcium levels)

Is there anything I can do to naturally prevent osteoporosis?

1. Eat - Eat foods designed for your genetic makeup (organic, free-range meats and grass-fed beef; organic, locally grown fruits and vegetables; organic, raw nuts and seeds)
2. Avoid dairy - high in protein and low in phosphorous, a combination that raises acidity in the body and is buffered by taking calcium out of bone
3. Avoid processed foods - cause chemical and metabolism problems that will decrease bone density
4. Eat onions - high in "gamma-glutamyl peptides" (shown to increase bone density)
5. Eat more natural protein - free range eggs and grass-fed beef (contain amino acids critical to bone health)
6. Avoid gluten - found in many grains, wheat, barley, rye, oats, and even spelt (shown to decrease bone density, as well as cause a variety of other inflammatory issues)
7. Take an omega-3 supplement - a good animal based, molecularly distilled omega-3 supplement is very important for building healthy bones
8. Avoid omega-6 - found in processed vegetable oils like corn, safflower, and soy
9. Take Vitamin D3 - shown to help body absorb calcium; best natural source is sunlight exposure, however a good cod liver oil can also aid in maintaining healthy Vitamin D blood levels
10. Weight bearing exercise - since the body is intelligently designed, it responds to bone stress by building stronger bones

Remember, health is your God-given right!

Dr. Eric Jaszewski can be reached at eric@pierceresults.com for further consultation.