HealthBee

OK. I can’t get enough of Vitamin D lately. I’m fascinated learning about it.

One of the questions I had with my doctor was to ask about Boniva. I had been taking it for years, and when my x-rays showed my bone density as improved enough that I no longer had osteoporosis my doctor pulled me off of it.

About a month ago, I went to my doctor and learned that my toe was cracked. I asked her if perhaps my osteoporosis was back. She told me that she wanted to get my Vitamin D levels back to normal before she put me back on Boniva. I asked what her thinking was, and she told me that even if I took Boniva (or any other Bisphosphonate such as Fosamax or Actonel), my body would only build weak bone. Without Vitamin D levels at a normal level, you’re not really helping yourself.

As always, talk to you doctor about what is best for you, but you might want to ask to be tested for Vitamin D.

As a 28 year old woman, I was diagnosed with Osteoporosis. I am often asked how this could happen to someone so young.

Not Absorbing Calcium in the Teen Years

The teenage years are prime bone building years. As a teenager, I had prolonged amenorrhea — that is, I didn’t have a regular period each month. This was due to the fact that I was really active, I danced, ran track and rode my bicycle for miles on end. As a result of doing all this, I had a low percentage of fat on my body — under 18%. Not having a period each month, I thought at the time, was a relief: I didn’t have to deal with it. What I didn’t know was that the amenorrhea was a sign of my body not producing enough estrogen.

Estrogen is not just a sex hormone, it does many things. One of which is to help the body to absorb calcium. While I was a good eater and had a healthy diet with plenty of cheese and milk and other calcium rich foods, I was not able to absorb what I took in. So, my prime bone building years actually gave me less dense bones than the average teenager.

Depression Promotes Bone Loss 

Another thing that sapped my calcium was because during my 20’s, I had a long period of depression. Depression raises the cortisone in the body and this will actually remove calcuim that is stored in the bones.

I didn’t know to have my bone density tested, nor did my doctor advise me to do it. I had my bone density tested because I happened to be the person at the doctor’s office at the time they installed a new bone density machine and they needed someone to test it. My doctor and I were both shocked at the results, however, after asking me some questions about my history, it all seemed to make sense.

Talk to Your Daughters 

I hope that parents who read this article are snoopy enough to ask their teenaged daughters if they are having regular periods. I hope they make sure their daughters eat enough calcium in their diets and watch them for signs of depression.

Osteoporosis is Reversible 

The good news is, Osteoporosis is reversible. With a calcium rich diet, taking my bone building meds, and by lifting weights or doing other weight bearing exercises, I am able to build up my bone mass and completely reverse the disease. And I am grateful that I didn’t have to break a bone to learn that. But the earlier you find you have this, the easier it is to reverse it.

I spoke with my doctor about taking St. John’s Wort and assumed she’d recommend against taking an herbal supplement. To my surprise, she supported it, and was glad I was up front with her about it. One thing I was really concerned at the time was if St. John’s Wort would interact with the Actonel I was taking for osteoporosis.

In my case, it was ok to take the two together. (As always, talk to your Doctor to see if this is the same for you.) However, I did get stomach upset when I did that, so she recommended that I separate the doseages. So, basically, I took my Actonel in the morning 30 minutes before breakfast and then an hour later, I’d take my first dose of St. John’s Wort. This worked well for me, and I did not experience any drug interaction issues.

Boniva & St. John’s Wort

I have since changed my Osteoporosis drug of choice to Boniva. Since it a once a month drug, and for some reason, it tends to upset my stomach a little more than the Actonel, I actually wait to take my St. John’s Wort at lunch on the day I take the Boniva. This has also worked well for me, and my Doctor informed me this is ok to take concurrently with St. John’s Wort.

As always, however, talk to your doctor about what supplements you are taking to see if those will interact or prevent your other medicines you take from working. Supplements are drugs too, even if many of them are herbal.