Keep bones strong without increasing bone mineral density

Increase bone mineral density and you’ll have stronger bones. Or at least, that’s the medical mainstream’s obsessive focus on how to go about reducing fracture risk in the elderly.

But as recent research shows, at some point, we reach the safe limit of bone mineral density. After that, excessive density actually makes bones brittle and more likely to fracture.

This simple concept is neatly revealed in a new investigation of vitamin K studies.

When researchers from Japan’s Keio University School of Medicine looked for randomized, controlled trials that tested the effectiveness of vitamin K supplements in reducing fracture risk, they had two primary criteria: The intervention period had to be at least two years, and in each study, subject groups had to number at least 50 (such as 55 vitamin K recipients vs. 55 placebo recipients).

Seven studies were found. Analysis of results showed that bone mineral density among subjects receiving vitamin K was either unchanged or just slightly increased. And yet, the authors write in the journal Nutrition Research: “High-dose vitamin K1 and vitamin K2 supplementation improved indices of bone strength in the femoral neck and reduced the incidence of clinical fractures.”

You can find more information about vitamin K and fracture risk – including tips on the different K forms, along with recommended dosages – in the e-Alert “Nutritional Rescue” (4/21/08).

Talk to your doctor before adding vitamin K to your supplement regimen.

Source:
“High-Dose Vitamin K Supplementation Reduces Fracture Incidence in Postmenopausal Women: A Review of the Literature” Nutrition Research, Vol. 29, No. 4, April 2009, sciencedirect.com