Have recently read a few articles/studies indicating that blueberries (blueberry powder) can improve BMD. Has anyone added blueberry powder to daily diet?
Is anyone taking/using blueberry powd... - Osteoporosis Support
Is anyone taking/using blueberry powder to improve bones?
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FearFracture
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If there is valid research backing this up, besides "it may help" would be what I would be looking for. Does that exist?
I went back to try to refind what I read. This might not be the exact article but as yogalibrarian points out the study was done on rats womenfitness.net/blueberry-...
Here is other info I have found
academic.oup.com/cdn/articl...
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/320...
There is some research as late as 2019 that states this may be helpful. I eat berries daily and drink organic tart cherry juice. Although this has not stopped my decline, I wonder if the extract is more powerful, thus more potent and useful. It wouldn't hurt to try it and obviously is good for the brain and other parts of our body.
I am going to add blueberry powder to my diet. Note, I looked up the difference between blueberry powder and blueberry extract and blueberry powder is the healthier option. Also, need to make sure it’s made from orangic wild blueberries.
At this moment, I’m sort of convinced that reversing my bone loss is more about increasing my bone formation (osteoblasts) than it is about decreasing turnover (osteoclasts) and the polyphenols in berries (blueberry powder) could potentially help me with this and with all the health benefits linked to blueberries, I don’t see how adding blueberry powder could hurt.
I think if blueberries were the answer to bone health, I'd have the bones of a 20-something gymnast. 
Thanks for posting about this. I think we'd all love to see defiinitive research and RCTs, but I've begun to allow for a category of 'no downside, possible benefit', especially wrt nutritional status. As you say, no harm in trying it. Wild blueberries are definitely more nutrient-dense and a great source of anthocyanins, so it makes sense to look for that in a product if you're going that route.
I'm going to add a few more articles in case anyone searching the topic wants more info on blueberries or on the effect of oxidative stress on bone health.
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articl...
Totally agree. It can't hurt, maybe can help, so why not. Plus it's probably good for the brain and heart as well.
This was a study in young rats -- not humans. And it is 12+ years old.
I regularly eat blueberries as part of a healthy diet, but no I haven’t used or heard of blueberry powder. I hadn’t thought of blueberries being good for bones (I was thinking more of being good for brain health & an overall great antioxidant). However, I was just reading up on blueberries and see that they contain manganese which: “According to studies, taking manganese along with other bone-supporting nutrients like calcium, vitamin D, magnesium, zinc, copper and boron can improve bone mass in women with weak bones and prevent bone spinal loss, which is useful to naturally fight osteoporosis.“ So, back to the blueberry powder - I imagine it’s more concentrated than just eating blueberries, but then I wonder if the processing might be detrimental to some of the natural nutrients?
From what I’ve read it depends on how they are processed and, if freeze-dried, blueberry powder retains nutrients. arcticflavors.com/2019/10/2...
I leaning towards adding the blueberry powder to my daily diet, or at least trying it. I eat blueberries, had a handful with my breakfast this morning, but I doubt the blueberries are wild and they aren’t organic. The nutritional value of wild blueberries is significantly higher than that of farmed blueberries. I’ve already looked up blueberry powder and there are brands that clearly list that use wild organic blueberries.
I have eaten a cup of organic wild blueberries every morning for the past 6 yrs. During this time I have gone from having osteopenia to having osteoporosis. I supposed the powder could be better, but I kind of doubt it.
FearFracture in reply to
I’m not expecting blueberry powder to be a miracle cure. I’m looking for small changes that can be made that can potentially add up to either less bone loss, no bone loss or gains in BMD.
Women tend to have the largest decrease in BMD in the yrs before and after menopause. I went through premature menopause at age 32. I’m now 54. Theoretically, I lost the largest percentage of bone when I was 27 to 37. I had BTM tests done in November 2022 and my markers for the most part seem to be w/i normal range; however, I have hypothyroidism and I’ve recently learned that hypothyroidism slows bone building. Anything that I can do to spark osteoblastic activity could potentially help.
Also, I’m not sure how you eat your wild blueberries, but there are studies that show eating blueberries w/ dairy decreases the “effectiveness”. It seems to have something to do with the fat in dairy because whole milk reduces the uptake of nutrients more than 1% milk. When I add blueberry powder to my diet, I won’t be adding the blueberry powder to yogurt or milk.
Hi FearFracture. I too am hypothyroid plus I have had type 1 diabetes for 64 yrs. I am now 72. I follow a low fat vegan diet, so no dairy for me. I don’t want to take meds for osteoporosis at this point either.
FearFracture in reply to
I took osteo-meds for a couple of yrs but have quit (alendronate 1.5 yrs / 1 zoledronic acid infusion in November 2021). My endocrinologist expected me to have a 2nd zoledronic acid infusion in November 2022 but I chose not to—I was never thrilled about taking osteoporosis meds but he kind of pushed me into it and I have since come to question a lot of what my endocrinologist does and doesn’t do.
Did you do HRT? I’ve actually found an OB/GYN who is willing to prescribe HRT and I considering try it.
Because I need to share, on a very disappointing note, on Tuesday a doctor submitted a referral for me to a new endocrinologist. I called today to see if they had received my referral and they said they had but they are no longer accepting new patients. Ugh! Back to the drawing board.
in reply to FearFracture
I took HRT years ago if I remember correctly, but not in a couple of decades. I think I would consider it, but would have to do more research. When seeing that I have Osteoporosis my internist told me that the osteoporosis meds are terrible and that I should just be careful not to fall. Not exactly a big help. My diabetes takes so much of my time, that I haven’t given the osteoporosis diagnosis a great deal of thought. Started taking calcium with Vit D and K, and started doing exercises which are supposed to help with balance. Also doing some exercises which are supposed to strengthen bones. I ordered a weighted vest, but haven’t worn it yet. I fell while gardening last summer but didn’t break anything. My older sister has osteopenia and she broke two bones when pulled down by her dog a few years ago.It didn’t convince her to go on meds. So sorry that the endo isn’t taking new patients. That is happening more and more.
FearFracture in reply to
It’s a bit pricey but you might also look up the Marodyne LiV platform—the research behind the technology was funded by NASA. Margaret Martin interviewed Dr. Ruben about the Marodyne LiV and the video provides a good amnt of info.
Thank you.
I will watch the video.
