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Calcium plus vitamin D prevents bone loss in elderly women
Monday, 29 November 1999 19:00 | 
| Medical Conferences News - ECR 2008 |
Even in sunny climates, the addition of vitamin D to calcium has long-term benefits on hip bone mineral density (BMD) and bone turnover in elderly community-dwelling women, researchers report.
Even in sunny climates, the addition of vitamin D to calcium has long-term benefits on hip bone mineral density (BMD) and bone turnover in elderly community-dwelling women, researchers report.
To evaluate the relative benefits of calcium with or without vitamin D on bone health, Dr. Richard Prince, of University of Western Australia, Perth, randomized 120 women from Perth to calcium (1200 mg/day) with placebo (the Ca group) or with vitamin D2 (1,000 IU/day; the CaD group) or double placebo (the control group). The women were between 70 and 80 years old.
Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry results at one year revealed that hip BMD was preserved in the Ca group (0.19 per cent) and the CaD group (-0.17 per cent) but not in the control group (-1.27 per cent). However, at three and five years, only the CaD group maintained hip BMD.
"At the clinically important hip site calcium therapy with an additional 1200 mg calcium as calcium carbonate a day, although initially successful at stopping bone loss, was not different from placebo at three or five years," the investigators point out in the January 17th online issue of the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.
In contrast to calcium alone, the addition of vitamin D 1000 IU to calcium supplementation maintained hip BMD for five years, primarily in women with baseline 25 hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) levels below the median (68 nmol/L). Treatment did not affect intestinal calcium absorption.
"The mechanism of the effect of calcium and vitamin D is considered to be related to reducing bone turnover and suppressing parathyroid hormone (PTH) in individuals with relatively high PTH levels at baseline," Dr. Prince and colleagues note.
"Indeed, at five years calcium alone was not as effective as the combination therapy in achieving either of these endpoints," they found.
To evaluate the relative benefits of calcium with or without vitamin D on bone health, Dr. Richard Prince, of University of Western Australia, Perth, randomized 120 women from Perth to calcium (1200 mg/day) with placebo (the Ca group) or with vitamin D2 (1,000 IU/day; the CaD group) or double placebo (the control group). The women were between 70 and 80 years old.
Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry results at one year revealed that hip BMD was preserved in the Ca group (0.19 per cent) and the CaD group (-0.17 per cent) but not in the control group (-1.27 per cent). However, at three and five years, only the CaD group maintained hip BMD.
"At the clinically important hip site calcium therapy with an additional 1200 mg calcium as calcium carbonate a day, although initially successful at stopping bone loss, was not different from placebo at three or five years," the investigators point out in the January 17th online issue of the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.
In contrast to calcium alone, the addition of vitamin D 1000 IU to calcium supplementation maintained hip BMD for five years, primarily in women with baseline 25 hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) levels below the median (68 nmol/L). Treatment did not affect intestinal calcium absorption.
"The mechanism of the effect of calcium and vitamin D is considered to be related to reducing bone turnover and suppressing parathyroid hormone (PTH) in individuals with relatively high PTH levels at baseline," Dr. Prince and colleagues note.
"Indeed, at five years calcium alone was not as effective as the combination therapy in achieving either of these endpoints," they found.
Tags: Calcium - plus - vitamin - D - prevents - bone - loss - in - elderly - women - bone mineral density(BMD) - turnover - health - vitamin D2 - Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry - CaD group - 1200 mg calcium - hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) - PTH - levels
