This could be the easiest way to avoid a hip fracture
I don’t have to tell you that once you reach a certain age, breaking a hip tops the list of things you never want to do.
That’s why some current findings about what might make seniors more prone to suffer a serious fracture like that deserved top billing on the news.
But if you blinked, you may have missed it!
And there’s something else that’s been missing from the headlines — the fact that there’s a safe and affordable way to help prevent those bone breaks.
Maybe that’s because this suit of armor is not a drug — and, as you probably already know, drug ads rule the network news broadcasts.
This could have been a case for Sherlock Holmes! Actually, you could call it “elementary.”
A new study has found that the people most apt to break a bone — especially a hip — are those who are most deficient in the trace mineral magnesium.
And you could be at risk right now, and not even know it — because a typical blood test isn’t a sufficient gauge of your actual levels.
HSI panel member Dr. Glenn Rothfeld explains that most magnesium isn’t found floating around in your blood — but rather, inside of your cells! The only way to really know your level involves more than just a blood test, but one called a magnesium RBC, that looks for the mineral inside your red blood cells.
Although this micronutrient is known to be a star player in certain cellular processes, the role it plays in bone fractures hasn’t really been understood until now.
Researchers from the Universities of Bristol and Eastern Finland who followed a group of 2,245 middle-aged men over two decades still don’t think they’ve put together the entire puzzle (yes, it’s that complicated!). But what they did find is that:
- Those with the lowest blood levels of magnesium were much more prone to suffer bone fractures, and particularly hip fractures.
- Men with higher levels were able to slash their risk of broken bones by a whopping 44 percent.
- None of the men who had what were described as “excessive” levels of magnesium suffered any fractures during the study period.
According to the researchers, some of the reasons your magnesium could become depleted include your age, inflammatory bowel disorders, malabsorption syndromes, diabetes, kidney impairment, and “certain medications.”
And at the top of their list, you’ll find proton-pump inhibitors.
That’s right, those popular OTC acid-blockers such as Nexium, Prilosec and Prevacid.
That fracture risk is something we told eAlert readers about years ago. At the time, based on another study, the FDA even came out with a warning on PPIs about “possible increased risk of fractures of the hip, wrist, and spine with high doses or long-term use.”
Back then, however, the problem was blamed on what was believed to be these meds interfering with calcium absorption and bone resorption — the process that enables the structure of bones to be renewed. What this latest study indicates is that they may also deplete our levels of magnesium.
So, anyway you look at it, these heartburn drugs are “bad to the bone.” And that’s only one of the growing number of ways that researchers have discovered they can do you bodily harm.
Taken over a period of time, they can actually shut down your kidneys and up the risk of contracting the often deadly form of diarrhea known as C. diff by 50 percent.
If you want to keep your magnesium levels up to par, one of the first things you should do is never start up on one of these PPI drugs.
If you happen to be taking one now, find a way to get off of them. But be sure not to stop cold turkey, since that can cause an even worse case of acid rebound. Slowly lower your dose instead.
Along with helping to keep your bones strong, magnesium is extremely valuable in many other ways — such as boosting your immune system, regulating your gut bacteria, preventing inflammation and osteoporosis, enabling your muscles and nerves to perform better, and controlling your blood pressure.
And you can easily find this amazing mineral in pill or powder supplement form. Just don’t depend on multivitamins, as they actually contain very little magnesium. Also avoid magnesium oxide and magnesium citrate, which are not absorbed well and can have a laxative effect.
You can also include more magnesium in your diet by eating almonds and cashews, broccoli, oatmeal and flaxseed.
Your bones will thank you.
“Magnesium could prevent fractures, say researchers” University of Bristol, April 12, 2017, ScienceDaily, sciencedaily.com
