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An article written by Ward Dean, in 2004, (I'm thinking that I referenced it before, somewhere), includes the following description of a trial using strontium carbonate:
In 1985, Dr. Stanley C. Skoryna of McGill University in Montreal conducted a small-scale study that pointed to a potential role for strontium in the treatment of humans.3 Three men and three women with osteoporosis were each given 600 to 700 mg/day of strontium in the form of strontium carbonate. Bone biopsies were taken in each patient at the iliac crest (hip bone), before and after six months of treatment with strontium. Biopsy samples showed a 172 percent increase in the rate of bone formation after strontium therapy, with no change in bone resorption. The patients receiving strontium remarked that the pains in their bones had diminished and their ability to move around had improved.
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
Thanks, Tex. You are a super sleuth!! It sounds promising. Why have I not heard of this before? You would think that at least the media would jump on this kind of news. But maybe they did in 1985 when the small scale study was performed and I was not even thinking about osteoporosis at that time. It just makes me think that it's been studied since then without such great results maybe. I am also just a little leary of putting more supplements in my body right now while I am still having D. Thanks again!
Probably one reason why that study didn't gain much publicity is because no one was likely to profit by it, so it wasn't promoted. If one of the major pharmaceutical companies had sponsored the study, to qualify a product for FDA approval, it almost surely would have made major waves in the medical world.
I hear you, though, about the risks of taking more supplements. If what you are doing now seems to be helping, then it might be a good idea to leave a strontium carbonate "experiment" in the wings, until you have a need, or a desire, to try it.
You're most welcome,
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
This is what Susan Ott, MD says about strontium ranelate on her page titled "Experimental Therapies":
Strontium ranelate
There have been several studies that show increased bone density, and one large study in Europe found reduction in osteoporotic fractures in patients treated with strontium. The drug has been approved for use in many countries but not in the USA. The mechanism of action is uncertain.
I have not seen any clinical trials showing benefit from over-the-counter forms such as strontium citrate, and none are listed on Clinical Trials.gov. Thus, I recommend that this form should be avoided unless it is shown to be both effective and safe.
Her website contains a lot of information and she seems to pretty objective. She teaches in the Department of Medicine at the University of Washington. Here is her home page: http://courses.washington.edu/bonephys/ophome.html
Gloria
You never know what you can do until you have to do it.
I got the results of my vitamin D test. My number was normal. I was pretty surprised. So I guess I won't be filling the prescription for 50,000 IUs. I've started walking - in the mall when it's cold and outside now that it's warmer. DH and I can't believe we're mall-walkers. We're that age??
I can't decide if the vitamin D result is good news or bad news. It's good because I don't have a deficiency, but it's one less area that I can improve in hopes of increasing my bone density. I'll continue to take 2,000 IUs per day, however.
I still haven't taken the Fosamax. I've pretty much decided that I shouldn't. I read somewhere that it has a half life of 10 years. That means that half of it is still in the body after 10 years! That's pretty astounding for a medication.
The bone density in my hip actually increased a slight percent, though that could be attributed to taking the Fosamax for 2 1/2 years. It's more common to get a hip fracture and I feel pretty confident that I'm not at risk for that. My spine is at high risk, so I'm hoping that the walking exercises will help.
Gloria
You never know what you can do until you have to do it.
I am sure sorry I am entering this discussion so late in the game, I have a great deal of personal experience with osteopenia/osteoperosis and what you have all discussed. About 3 1/2 yrs ago I was scheduled for a total hysterectomy and I asked for a dexa scan to establish a base line, much to my surprise my T-Scores were poor in the hip and almost osteoperotic in the spine and I was just 46 yrs old and premenopausal. I was shocked, that was when I was first introduced to this amazing endocrinoligist (bone is not an orthopedic organ, theye are actually an endocrine organs). He studies and researches bone health. He put me through a rigerous test that was 6 hours monitoring through blood and urine calcium absorption, after a loading dose, and found I did not absorb any calcium at all. He evaluates about 128 different factors (through blood tests) to determine appropriate absorption of key nutrients, he looks at hormones, vitamins all blood chemestries etc.etc.etc. It was quite an amazing process. He determined even though I had fairly normal levels of all of the vit D that there was some sort of interference with the mechanism with vitiman D, calcium and phosphorous absorption. For the first 6 months he put me on prescription dose of 1-25-dihydroxycholecalciferol (calcitriol) with no change in my dexa. Then we discussed alternatives and I was quite adverse to any of the bisphosphate durgs (fosamax, etc.) due to the side effects. Again as I did with MC, I read everything I could, that time info from medscape was very informative, that is where I heard about Strontium and found they have been using it in Europe and Australia for over 20 years. (I guess they don't reccomend it here since the drug companies can't make a profit from it.) He wanted me to try strontium, I started with a dose of 540 mg twice a day and continued on the calcitriol.
The next dexa scan showed great improvement, I increased the dose to 540 mg three times a day which is what I now take, and my last dexa scan in October read normal in the hip and almost normal in the spine. On my last visit to see him on Friday he commented that he thought I have probably had an absorption problem in my gut for many years and he believes my osteopenia, thyroid condition and the MC are all related in some way. Pretty interesting stuff, I wish I could share my endocrinologist with all of you maybe he could do a study that would link all of this together. He would be the guy to do it, he is one of those super intelligent people that is somewhat hard to talk to because he is at a thinking level above most people.
Anyway I get my strontium from a web site iherb.com, and buy the Doctors Best brand. It is really cheep, no side effects, and I am amazed at the progress I have made.
Hope this info helps
KD
Very interesting. That appears to be strontium citrate, rather than strontium carbonate. I don't understand your dosage, though. The capsules appear to hold 340 mg each, (of elemental strontium), so I assume you mean 340 mg, three times daily. Right?
Thanks for that information.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
Tex
There you go, you are probably right about the dose, I quickly pulled up the website when I was referencing it, and my old eyes seem to have failed me.
KD
Wow - I just heard from the osteoporosis specialist. I had called him earlier today to see what he thought about taking strontium citrate. I still haven't filled my Fosamax prescription. To my surprise, he said he didn't see any reason why I shouldn't try it, if I could get it. He said that it's widely prescribed in Canada, Europe and Brazil, but since it hasn't been approved by the FDA here, he doesn't know that much about it. He said that it improves bone density, but it's not known if it also improves bone strength. He said it's very close to calcium on the mineral chart. (Sounds like he knows more than he's letting on.)
He said I could try it for a couple of months and then they could do a blood and urine test to see if I'm getting too low in my calcium retention. I mentioned that I'd read that the side effects are nausea and diarrhea and since I have Lymphocytic Colitis, that could be a problem. I told him that I have it largely under control, however. I stopped taking Entocort on April 2 - I'm keeping my . The study I read said the side effects seem to disappear after 3 months. The osteoporosis doctor said if I was concerned about the diarrhea possibility, I might want to talk to my GI about it.
In doing a Google scholar search for strontium renalate vs strontium citrate, I found the following quote:
You can get an even higher elemental yield from some other forms of Strontium. Strontium carbonate, for instance, has 593 mg of Strontium per gram of the compound. But many of these forms of Strontium have poor “gastric tolerance” - in other words, they’re more likely to cause upset stomach or diarrhea. The ranelic acid salt has good gastric tolerance.
I will buy some and do a two-month trial and see how it goes.
Gloria
You never know what you can do until you have to do it.
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
I DO hope this is something that will work for you. If it causes you a D problem will you consider going back on Entocort for a while to give your body some time to get adjusted to it? Just a thought I had. I don't know if it would work.
Love, Shirley
When the eagles are silent, the parrots begin to jabber"
-- Winston Churchill
I've taken strontium citrate first thing in the morning for four days now, 2 - 340 mg. per day. I had a small rash on my wrist the first and second days, but that seems to have disappeared. But yesterday and today, I've had a slight headache and have been very tired - but only in the afternoon and evening. I feel similar to the way I feel when I have a reaction to something I've eaten; ie., I don't feel very well. I have a normal or solid BM in the morning, but by afternoon, I have either soft stools or yesterday, it turned into D.
One article I read says that
It can be derived from mined ore, processed with citric acid from corn dextrose and fermented with palm oil to produce strontium citrate.
I've pretty much ruled out corn as a possible intolerance and I don't recall having problems with palm oil.
Everything I've read says there are few side effects to this supplement, the most common being nausea and diarrhea. Headaches are also mentioned.
I really want this supplement to be the answer to my dilemma, but I don't want my bones to be strong at the expense of my sense of well-being. I think I'm going to stop taking it and see if some of my symptoms subside. There's always the possibility that I have a little viral infection. I can try again after a week.
Gloria
You never know what you can do until you have to do it.
Visit the Microscopic Colitis Foundation Website
It sounds promising. Why have I not heard of this before? You would think that at least the media would jump on this kind of news. But maybe they did in 1985 when the small scale study was performed and I was not even thinking about osteoporosis at that time. It just makes me think that it's been studied since then without such great results maybe. I am also just a little leary of putting more supplements in my body right now while I am still having D. Thanks again!
