Hi diagnosed with early signs of osteoporosis. Advised to take calcium tablets which didn't agree with me. Would HRT help?

[Y3she]

does HRT help osteoporosis?

[Fruitandnutcase]

What are the early signs? Do you have osteoporosis or is is osteopenia? Do you know your DEXA results. Your next move will depend on a lot of different things. You might be able to improve things by making changes to how you live - more weight bearing exercise, stopping smoking if you smoke, eating a more bone friendly diet if you are not doing so already - the ROS have advice on how to get more calcium and vitamin D into your diet - or you may be able to take HRT.I would go onto the ROS website and read that and any other books you can find about osteoporosis and find out as much as you can about your condition and also about vitamins and minerals that will help your bones.

The calcium carbonate calcium tablets I was prescribed really didn’t agree with me but fortunately when I worked it out I was getting a lot of dietary calcium so now I just top it up with a little bit every day to be on the safe side. I started taking calcium citrate but I now take one based on seaweed and both of them were ok.

[Karana81 in reply to Fruitandnutcase]

I take food based calcium, with my meal, which I imagine would be more tolerable for you. The brand is New Chapter and it is called Bone Strength. I also take 1,000 mg of vitamin D a day and do weight bearing exercise . You might try something like this routine before HRT, which could have some negative long term effects. Best of luck!

[Y3she in reply to Fruitandnutcase]

Yes I was diagnosed as osteopena -1.7.I was told to take calcium, then a Dr did blood tests and said my calcium was OK so don't take them. I'm worried about it getting worse over the years. I do do alot of exercise and eat well. I drink quite a lot of milk too

[Nightingales]

Hi, after lots or research I decided to take HRT for bone protection. I am allergic to Alendronic Acid and didn’t like the side effects of the other meds. Talking to the wonderful nurse at the ROS helped and this article. theros.org.uk/information-a...

[Y3she in reply to Nightingales]

Thank you ... I will give it a read 👍

[t1gernidster]

Have you been tested for hyperparathyroidism? It’s a cause of osteoporosis which GPs overlook. A simple blood test will show excess calcium in your bloodstream and it needs to be addressed or the condition with worsen and no amount of medication will help your bones. For what it’s worth I would definitely take HRT if you can.

[Cappuccinobaby in reply to t1gernidster]

I'm with you get your calcium levels checked Y3she as hyperparathyroidism causes osteoporosis and can be cured giving u some bone density back !

[Met00]

Have you been advised to take just calcium tablets, or calcium with Vitamin D? NICE recommends that we get calcium from diet if possible, and only supplement to make up any shortfall. Most of us are deficient in Vitamin D during the winter months and some of us all year round, so it's recommended to take a supplement - for many of us, that may need to be 2000iu daily or more, but the only way to know is to monitor blood levels through blood tests. I would ask your GP to run tests to rule out any possible underlying causes of your loss of bone density - at a minimum, your Vitamin D, calcium and parathyroid levels should be checked at the same time, plus thyroid, coeliac and a full blood count. As Fruitandnutcase says, there's plenty you can do to help your bone health, especially regular exercise (as high impact as is safe for you) and exercising with weights and resistance bands.

[Y3she in reply to Met00]

Yes apparently my calcium levels are normal so I don't think i need to take extra calcium as they just made my bones ache. I do do quite a bit if exercise at nuffield health club and also walk a dog everyday. Since the menopause I have felt so so dry and therefore feel like it's made my bones dry too. I haven't taken HRT but in hindsight feel that I probably should of. Am I too late to start it? Who knows .... it's a minefield!!!

[Met00 in reply to Y3she]

I've come across a lot of info recently about body identical transdermal HRT, which is considered very safe for most people and can be prescribed (by a knowledgeable GP!) at any age, even 70s.

As far as blood calcium is concerned, it's tightly regulated by the parathyroid glands, assuming they're working properly, and having a good blood level doesn't mean it's reaching your bones. You need to calculate your calcium intake, make sure your blood level is within range and parathyroid level correct relative to calcium and D levels; also Vit K2 helps send calcium to the bones.

[Sunseaandsand]

Hi can the body identical transdermal HRT be of any help to people with severe Osteoporosis??Thanks in advance.

[Met00 in reply to Sunseaandsand]

I've seen claims for and against, so can't answer that one! There's a private clinic run by a menopause specialist, Dr Newson, who is well respected in the medical profession and a strong proponent of HRT. You could Google her, or I there's also an HRT Facebook group.

[Sunseaandsand in reply to Met00]

Thank you, in my case I am thinking any help I can get without severe side effects (I can not tolerate the bone meds and in a really bad place) 10 spinal fractures and not wanting to try the Romosozumab.

The question I can never be given the answer to at my appointments is how long would I have to be on a medication before it really slowed my chance of a fracture down??

[Met00 in reply to Sunseaandsand]

Oh dear, you are in a tough place. Maybe there isn't an answer to that because we're all different? I don't know about HRT but I would assume that the bone meds would make some sort of difference within a year, not that there's any guarantee they would prevent further fractures.🤔🤔

[Mavary]

Did you go back to the Dr as there may be a different sort you can take.

[DinahM]

I was diagnosed with osteopenia in my 40s. I started HRT at that time and at 69 a recent bone scan showed early osteoporosis (-2.5 in left hip) I still take HRT and am convinced it has kept my bone loss at bay.