ive been diagnosed with osteoporosis, have a problem deciding whether to take alendronic acid

Reading information leaflet it advised a dental examination before taking meds. I had an appointment the next day and she said I need work  on a wisdom tooth and she prefers to do it before I start meds. So my doctors appointment is in a weeks time and Im trying to get as much infor as possible to present to her. Again thank you for your info. I am taking vit k and magnesium with my evening meal. I have read vit k should be taking with a fat? have you heard this too. I have been prescribed adcal-d3 reading the leaflet it sayes dont take within 2 hrs of eating whole foods and soime acids like in rhubarb. so im taking the 2 hrs after breakfast and before bed? not sure if Im taking these vits at the right times for best absorbtion. Can you help? 

Thank you

I don't think it matterswith vitamin k2 but I take magnesium away from everything else. If I were to take calcium I would take that away from the magnesium. I have supper consisting of yoghurt and fruit and my main pills are taken then including K2. 

Those results are not too bad especially the femur. I only get those two measurements here in Australia. You should be able to pull back those levels if you decide to just do the natural route. The decision is yours alone with full information and research.

I've given up the magnesium and enjoy an Epsom salts bath soak every once in a while!  (Very relaxing at bedtime).  I can never remember to take a magnesium capsule at the right time!  One needs a spreadsheet to keep track of all these meds etc.

Thank you again

Sorry for your pain but interested in your choice to try the natural route despite having broken bones. 

I have had two shoulder reconstructions 12 years apart on my shoulders. The first was from a bad fall down a very long staircase. Nothing was broken but all four tendons were ripped off the bone. The second one was partly wear and tear and pulling myself out of a pool.

I am surprised the shoulder surgeon said that about the drugs for osteoporosis. They usually blindly support the drugs. Mind you, my oral surgeon did not either  as he has travelled all over the world operating on people with jaws that have died from taking the drugs for more than three years.

I hope you are able to improve your bone density and suffer no more broken bones.

All the best and please keep updating here.

I don't think it matters when you take your vitamin K2.  I take two capsules a day, one at breakfast when I'm taking my pred and a few other supplements (NOT calcium of course) the other at evening meal with other supplements including one of my calcium doses.  I haven't read anything which would indicate it should or shouldn't be taken with other things.

I"ve just been busy reading through the polymyalgia rheumatica posts, so mentioned pred (prednisone) the medication used to treat PMR, which interferes with calcium metabolism.  So the rest of you can ignore that mention....

Thanks for the info, it's so helpful to discuss with people who have been through all of this, I was starting to feel really depressed at the thought of taking medication prescribed but feeling more positive now I'm looking at alternatives

Hi Sue. The day my doctor told me I had osteoporosis I was shattered.  Not to say crushed.  Puns intended.  However it turned out she was wrong and the diagnosis was actually "low bone mass" aka osteopenia.  It took me two months to find out the actual t-score during which time I believed I had OP, and spent a lot of time researching.  I also had the good fortune to be in touch with a friend of mine who had been diagnosed with osteoporosis and had followed a completely natural regimen, including Vitamin K2, and reversed the trend, moved her measuerment from OP to osteopenia and continues to improve ( shown through her successive DXA scans over the years).  I had already decided that alendronic acid was not for me and I would rather crumble away from OP than risk the side effects.  As it happens I finally got my t-score and it was -2.  The day I learned that I felt lighter and lighter all day, as though a crushing weight had been lifted from me and I was slowly rebounding!  It was amazing.  My whole mental outlook changed.  But best of all by then I was well on the way to improving that t-score.  The following year (last October) I got a follow up scan and it was -1.6, and they are no longer recommending drug treatment!  And I did that even though for most of the intervening year my dose of prednisone had still been high enough to have had a potential bad effect on my bone density.  So I know from personal experience that we CAN improve our bone health completely naturally.  Although I do admit that I started from a place not as dire as it could have been, and as I initially thought it was.  My friend told me she felt that of the exercise she did Nordic walking was the most helpful for her bones.  I have taken up Nordic walking and tai chi, and fairly regularly wear a weighted walking vest.  I take Vitmain K2, eat very few carbs, especially not sugary things, just small treats - a sliver of cake, not a slice, for example, or a single square of dark chocolate.  I don't rely on dairy but consume a lot of leafy greens, like kale and broccoli, and I do eat yoghurt, cheese and drink kefir.  

Thanks so much for the information, it's realy helpful

I know, but this is what I have read, that unlike some of the other fat soluble vitamins we do not store it.  I know one can get into trouble with too much vitamin A, especially through supplements rather than food, but apparently this does not happen so easily with K2.  I'll see if I can find the reference. 

Ah, read that unlike other fat soluble vitamins Vitamin K2 is not stored in the liver so it does not become toxic. 'There is no known toxicity associated with high doses of menaquinones (vitamin K2). Unlike the other fat-soluble vitamins, vitamin K is not stored in any significant quantity in the liver; therefore the toxic level is not a described problem. All data available as of 2017 demonstrate that vitamin K has no adverse effects in healthy subjects. The recommendations for the daily intake of vitamin K, as issued recently by the US Institute of Medicine, also acknowledge the wide safety margin of vitamin K: "A search of the literature revealed no evidence of toxicity associated with the intake of either K1 or K2". Animal models involving rats, if generalisable to humans, show that MK-7 is well-tolerated." '

I didn't know there could be concerns re.  side-effects for patients taking vit K and also taking some prescribed blood thinners. There are many elderly people using anticoagulants for heart and blood pressure conditions who could also have osteoporosis and choose to take this vitamin.  The possible dangers here should be highlighted more and people should check with their doctors before taking ANY vitamins or supplements. There are many who think that 'natural' means safe. Not neessarily so. Be careful. 

J

On the other hand K2 is supposed to help with cardiac issues caused by calcium supplements. Your advice may be useful for others, after all we all need to be careful depending on our own situation.  This is why I never recommend dosages to others - just tell them to follow the dosage on the bottle. We all need to be sensible!  I'm nearly free of prednisone (for polymyalgia rheumatica) and take no other medications.  

Juno-Iri-Dub, I think that K2 is less problematic that K1, and also it isn't an issue with some new bloodthinners.  But it is always wise to check for interactions if you're on any serious meds.  I think that should be a given.  After all, people like me, layperson not your gp, is only telling people what's out there that could be useful to them.  It's like when people suggest taking turmeric for inflammation.  Or liquorice to stimullate adrenal function.  I look those items up and decide whether it will work for me and my situation.  With prednisone the answer was no, although I know a lot of people do take one or both of these with apparently no problems!  And there is usually someone, like Alison, around to remind people to check! 

Take care. J

Thank you

I don't know any reason why these two supplements should not be taken with food.  Calcium is known to interfere with the absorption of some other nutrients (iron and magnesium come to mind) but I can't seem to find any indication that it interferes with vitamins.  It's important to know that Vitamins D3 and K2 need each other for optimum benefit to the body.  I can really only say what I do.  I have to take a medication at breakfast time which interferes with calcium metabolism.  So I take that in the morning, and my calcium at supper and a little while before bedtime.  I always have food with it.  I take a dose of K2 in the morning, and another with my supper.  I've also read that there should be some fat present when taking K2 as it is a fat soluble vitamin but on the other hand we can get Vitamin K2 from some fermented vegetables which would be rather lacking in fat, wouldn't you think?  So I'm afraid I don't know the answer.  When you think about it, normally we would get all our vitamins from our food, with the exception of sunlight giving us D, so it makes sense to take them with food.  I wouldn't stress too much about it, just use your commonsense and you'll be fine!

Thank you again