Bone Stress-fractures - calcium and vitamin D really do help

Bone fractures, due to bones getting over stressed, is a big problem for the US Navy - particularly with female recruits. 21% of female recruits going through basic training suffered bone stress fractures. The nutrition trial was to find out if taking high doses of calcium and vitamin D would make a difference.

Taking 2,000 mg of calcium and 800 IU of vitamin D per day made a big difference with a 20% reduction in bone stress-fractures. These intakes are high compared to US guidelines but there is enough evidence to expect the guidelines to eventually change. For women aged 19 to 50 the US government guideline on calcium i s 1,000 mg per day and 400 IU's of vitamin D a day. The female navy recruits were taking in a lot of calcium and vitamin D by US standards but the higher doses seem to be essential to have an impact on bone health.

The research published on-line today in The Journal of Bone and Mineral Research was the result of research involving the Naval Institute for Dental and Biomedical Research at Great Lakes ,Illinois and Creighton University Osteoporosis Research Center, Omaha, Nebraska.

The Creighton University Osteoporosis Research Center has been running an osteoporosis study since 1967 amongst a group of nuns. At the start, the average age of the nuns was 40. Much research has been published from this study.

The outcomes from the nun study include:

• protein intake needs to be high to use and retain calcium
• body requirements for vitamin D have to be fully satisfied
• calcium intake needs to go up 50% at menopause
• this increase in calcium intake at menopause is difficult for many to manage
• high intake of calcium and vitamin D reduces bone fracture risk 40 to 55%
• osteoporosis is influenced by many factors with nutrition being just one but one that is under one's own control.