(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Calcium supplements can prevent fractures and bone
quality but only if they are actually taken. The results of a five-year study on
women 70 years of age and older reveal merely prescribing calcium supplements
will be ineffective for nearly half of women.
Researchers from Australia studied the effect of calcium supplementation on
1,460 elderly women. Researchers wanted to know what could be done to help women
with the bone loss they suffer after menopause. A decline in natural hormones
contributes to calcium deficiencies in women, which can lead to osteoporosis and
broken bones.
Researchers assigned half of the women in the study to take 1,200 milligrams of
calcium each day. The other half was given placebo tablets.
As the end of the five-year study, researchers found there was no difference in
the risk of fracture between the two groups. In the women assigned to take
calcium, researchers discovered only 56 percent took their pills 80 percent or
more of the time. These compliant women were less likely to suffer a bone
fracture than women in the placebo group (10.2 percent vs. 15.4 percent).
The researchers concluded that as a widespread public health approach, calcium
supplementation cannot be recommended as the way to prevent fractures in older
women. They do say, however, for women who can be compliant, the use of calcium
supplements is a safe and effective way to reduce the risk of bone fractures.
SOURCE: Archives of Internal Medicine, 2006;166:869-875
