© Times OnlineOsteoporotic bone showing areas that have lost mass
Among people with hip fractures referred to the Scottish fracture liaison service, 98 percent test positive for serious deficiencies in vitamin D. Supplementation with the vitamin, on the other hand, significantly reduces the risk of repeat fractures.
"Taking a supplement can make a difference quite quickly," said Stephen Gallacher, head of the liaison service. "Bone density can increase by 20 percent in a few months with enough vitamin D."
"We have found we can reduce fractures by something like 30 to 50 percent. It is our belief that we can significantly reduce the risk of fractures in the population by giving people anti-osteoporosis therapy and vitamin D supplements."
The fracture liaison service is a comprehensive attempt to uncover the cause of broken bones and prevent repeat occurrences. Anyone over the age of 50 who breaks a bone in Scotland is referred to the service for a bone density and vitamin D assessment, and treatment is suggested for those who are deficient.
Data collected by the fracture liaison service shows that vitamin D deficiency is nearly universal among hip fracture patients in Scotland. This could explain the relatively high rate of fractures in comparison with countries such as Iceland, which has more comprehensive dietary education, he said.
The data suggest that "vitamin D inadequacy represents a significant correctable risk factor for fragility fracture in our elderly population, and that the observed prevalence of inadequacy is substantially higher than in many other parts of the world," he said.
"In the United States, milk which is fortified with vitamin D can be purchased alongside ordinary milk and I think there's an argument that it would be quite useful to do the same here," he said. "It makes logical sense to give people the choice."
This article fails to point out that there has been NO legitimate study that has demonstrated a substantial increase in bone density by taking Vitamin D supplements ALONE. Note that Gallacher says "by giving people anti-osteoporosis therapy and vitamin D supplements." It's the "therapy" (i.e., bisphosphonate drugs) that gives the 20% increase, but at the price of a whole raft of side effects, including necrosis of the jaw. These drugs are so deadly that even those who push them recommend not staying on them for longer than 2 years.
In my own case I took several thousand I.U. of Vitamin D per day for years and never saw any improvement in my osteoporotic bones. I AM now seeing improvement by following a therapy designed to reduce an intraphagocytic overgrowth of metagenic microbiota that insures its survival by disrupting Vitamin D and calcium metabolism. See [Link]
The article correctly correlates low D measurements with bone fractures, but correlation is not the same as causation. The low D occurs due to the metabolic interference from the microbiota. Supplementing with more D just gives the microbiota more "fuel for their fire," enabling them to persist and doing nothing to address the underlying metabolic dysfunction. See [Link]