Alendronic Acid, prednisolone and PMR- help please!
Posted , 8 users are following.
To take or not to take, that is the question...There is a lot of clinical evidence to be found for the fact that AA can increase bone density which helps to lower the incidence of fracture caused by osteoporosis, steroid induced or otherwise. I have taken a couple of doses, and it is causing me a lot of grief with gastric problems, which I have never had previously. There seems to be a lot of resistance to taking AA for that reason, and also apparently for the quality of bone laid down. Can anyone point me to clinical evidence, hopefully backed up by peer review that casts doubt on bone quality, and any other reasons for not taking AA? I've just turned 70 and my GP has told me that it doesn't matter what any DEXA scan says, but that I am seriously at risk of osteoporosis because of my age anyway. I am doing all the right things in terms of diet to help mitigate the effects of pred by taking the usual calcium and vit d tablets, and also taking vitamin K2 to help the calcium get to the bones. I would appreciate any evidence, clinical rather than anecdotal so that I can back up my arguments against taking AA with my doctors, especially if I can point to evidence that loss of bone mass can be prevented by measures other than taking AA or the like. I was diagnosed with PMR a month ago and have just successfully reduced from 25mg to 20. Will be taking it slowly from here on as suggested by Eileen.
0 likes, 57 replies
Anhaga april1247
Posted
Anhaga
Posted
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4497616/
april1247 Anhaga
Posted
Thank you for that Anhaga, and for the information about taking calcium in smaller doses more often. Most helpful. I imagine the initials NIH stand for National Institute of Health? I'm curious by the way as to why taking calcium at night might help you sleep? Is it ok to take it with hot milky drink last thing at night, or do you need something more substantial to eat wth it do you know?
EileenH april1247
Posted
It's said that calcium helps sleep. Google "does calcium help sleep" and one of thlinks that comes up says "William Sears, M.D. writes: "Calcium helps the brain use the amino acid tryptophan to manufacture the sleep-inducing substance melatonin. This explains why dairy products, which contain both tryptophan and calcium, are one of the top sleep-inducing foods.""
So there you are - Grandma's hot milk before bed wasn't just an old wives tale!
Michdonn EileenH
Posted
Anhaga april1247
Posted
For me, I've found I need to take my calcium no less than twenty minutes before lying down for the night, and I usually have a very small snack or half a glass of milk with it. Recently someone posted somewhere that we shouldn't be taking calcium with food, but I'd never heard that before and I'm going to ignore that advice, especially as my stomach is more comfortable if there's a little food in there with the calcium capsules. You may find something else works better for you. It's not like pred or painkillers, very unlikely to cause problems with stomach or gut.
Anhaga april1247
Posted
EileenH Anhaga
Posted
"someone posted somewhere that we shouldn't be taking calcium with food"
Why ever not? You need a small amount of fat for it to be transported - and I have fewer problems taking my calcium/vit D with a meal than any other time.
april1247 EileenH
Posted
april1247 Anhaga
Posted
Anhaga, I've just read the article to which you gave the link. Thank you SO much, its given me the ammunition that I need and the confidence to go ahead with my decision.
kathy67492 april1247
Posted
You have had a lot of responses already from people with more experience...but you might want to read about the "quality" of the bone density that may be acquired on the bone density drugs.....so many side-effects.
april1247 kathy67492
Posted
EileenH april1247
Posted