Osteoporosis Treatments
You Need To Know About

Osteoporosis, “porous bones“, is a disease that causes bones to become brittle and very susceptible to fractures.¹ These fractures typically occur in the hip, spine, and wrist. A fracture or broken bone can have a huge effect on your life, causing disability, pain, or loss of independence. Fractures can make it very difficult to do daily activities without help. And unfortunately, the International Osteoporosis Foundation currently estimates that 1 in 3 women and 1 in 5 men over age 50 will suffer an osteoporotic fracture.²

From age 40 and on we lose about 1% of our bone density each year!³ With that said, you should be aware of the litany of causes and risk factors that can increase your chances of osteoporosis.

The Top Causes of Osteoporosis

Be on the lookout for the following osteoporosis triggers. Some will come as no surprise. But others just might. Here are some predictable causes:

• Lack of weight-bearing exercise
• An overactive thyroid
• Sugar and sugary-drinks like soda
• Lack of estrogen

However, there are others.  Here’s a handy visual guide to some of the top osteoporosis triggers. All this said, one of the top causes of osteoporosis is insufficient nutrients for healthy bones. That means not enough of the “good stuff” (calcium, magnesium, boron, strontium and other trace minerals, vitamins D3, K2, A, E, C, B, and omega 3 fatty acids). And it means plenty of the “bad stuff” (excessive intake of pro-inflammatory compounds like refined sugars, pesticides, and endocrine disruptors). Check out the following article for the comprehensive list of 42 osteoporosis causes and how you can get more of the “good” and avoid the “bad”.

Risk Factors for Osteoporosis

In the past, osteoporosis was thought of as a woman’s disease. Now we know that men also have to worry about weak bones and are at risk of osteoporosis. In fact, one in four men over the age of 50 will suffer a fracture caused by osteoporosis. The following factors can increase your chances of developing osteoporosis.

However, some of these may be out of your control like your age – and that’s ok. The message is this: you are NOT doomed. Frankly, you can do something about your bone loss once you know what is causing it. So go back to our osteoporosis and diagnosis testing section above to pinpoint what that is for you.

• Your Sex – Fractures from osteoporosis are about twice as common in women as they are in men. And according to the National Osteoporosis Foundation, approximately 80% of Americans living with osteoporosis are women! Chalk this up to biology: women’s bones are naturally thinner and they start off with less bone density than men’s anyways. The drastic decline of estrogen during menopause also doesn’t help, taking bone mass with it. Discover more on how osteoporosis is detected, diagnosed and treated in women.
• Age – Your bones become weaker as you age. As mentioned above, come age 40, we all tend to lose 1% or so of our bone mass every year. Over a lifetime, you can expect to lose 45-50% of your bone mass!
• Race – Caucasian and Southeast Asians have a greater risk of osteoporosis, with white women having the highest fracture risk. Black and Hispanic men and women have a lower but still significant risk. To illustrate the great variance in bone health depending on ethnicity, the risk of hip fracture at age 50 is 15.8% and 6.0% in American women and men, respectively, while those same figures for Chinese women and men are 2.4% and 1.9%.⁴
• Family History – Having a family member with osteoporosis puts you at greater risk, as osteoporosis is genetic. In fact, a study published in the online medical journal Nature Genetics showed as many as 32 genetic regions linked to osteoporosis and likelihood of fractures.⁵ One of the study’s authors cautioned there may in fact be over 500 gene variants influencing osteoporosis. What’s more, several studies agree measures of bone health- like bone mineral density- are 60-80% likely to be explained by heredity. Your family genes have a significant influence on your bones’ fate!
• Body Size – Individuals who are thin or have small body frames have a higher risk because they have less bone mass. This one’s self-explanatory. The less bone mass a person has, the more likely that bone is to become brittle, as there’s less density to protect the bone. Osteoporosis creates more holes in your bone- your bones become more porous- so this issue is amplified when the bone is already thinner than most!
• Breast Cancer – Women who have had breast cancer are at increased risk of osteoporosis, especially if they were treated with chemotherapy. The National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases reports that due to loss of ovarian function during cancer treatment, estrogen levels drop. And as we outlined in the previous point, a reduction in estrogen promotes bone loss. The National Institutes of Health-sponsored Women’s Health Initiative Observational Study (WHI-OS) also found breast cancer survivors had increased risk of fractures⁶.
• Diet – A diet lacking in calcium (and many other bone-friendly nutrients) plays a major role in the development of osteoporosis. This may seem obvious, but not only is it important to consume calcium, it’s important you get the right kinds of calcium. Supplementing with your typical store-bought calcium is not the best way to get enough and expect to ward off osteoporosis.

Here’s why: those calcium supplements you’re swallowing are actually made from rock. That’s right… marble and limestone to be precise. And our bodies aren’t designed to absorb rock ingredients. It’s not a natural osteoporosis treatment like calcium derived from organic sources like food and plants. That’s why you should be diligent about the kind of calcium you put in your body!

We recommend a plant-based calcium source that actually contains proper calcium and the other crucial trace minerals your bones are made of, and need on a daily basis! In fact, this naturally-occurring calcium source actually mirrors the same mineral composition in your bones. And no 1-ingredient rock calcium supplement can claim that.

Taking preventative measures is the best defense against getting osteoporosis. After all, the FDA states that “Adequate calcium and vitamin D throughout life, as part of a well-balanced diet, may reduce the risk of osteoporosis.” But it’s never too late to make small changes to the way you live that can help you improve your bone health, no matter what stage of your journey you’re at.

1. Healthy Lifestyle: To have healthy bones you must practice good habits. Adequate rest included. Studies have shown that a lack of sleep can affect your bone health by impacting how our bones repair themselves.⁷ And you can stack the odds in your favor when you include the following key ingredients in your everyday life.
2. Exercise: Get out there and be active! Exercise is shown to slow bone loss and improve muscle strength. Muscles are attached to bone, and therefore can influence their health. With strong bones comes strong posture and movement. By having stronger bones you can limit bone-damaging falls because you can move freely with confidence. Most kinds of exercise are good, but your bones crave weight-bearing exercises above all. That’s any kind of exercise where your body works against gravity. Don’t worry, because these include everything from the most simple to the intense: walking, dancing, running, yoga, lifting weights, gardening and playing tennis all count!
3. Avoid Bone Destroying Toxins: It’s not only pro-inflammatory foods (like processed white flour, preservatives, and sugar) you need to worry about. Your surroundings are important too. Household cleaners, makeup, and even beauty products can contribute to toxicity in the body and promote bone loss. In addition, most commonly prescribed drugs can also damage your bones, which was discussed above.
4. A Multi-Nutrient Approach: Like everything to do with your body, your diet directly affects your bone health. And much of the equation is interlinked: Too little calcium will hurt your bones. Too little magnesium, same result. Too little vitamin D3 and you won’t be able to absorb calcium. And too little vitamin K2, and you won’t be able to activate the proteins that put calcium into your bones and keep it out of your arteries! Protein is also crucial as it provides the structural framework for your bones – and is vital for muscle growth. And since you shouldn’t just eat to accommodate one or two vitamins or minerals, it’s important to view your diet as a whole. Ensuring you follow an anti-inflammatory diet as much as possible is key. The less inflammation in your body, the fewer problems you’ll have throughout — including your bones! A diet rich in vegetables, fruits, fish and whole grains like quinoa and brown rice will go a long way to battling inflammation. It probably goes without saying, but avoiding excess sugars, processed foods and artificial ingredients will greatly help preserve bone mineral density… and ward off osteoporosis. Your bones need calcium, but they also need much more than that! They need magnesium, vitamin K2, vitamin D3, vitamin C, boron, and trace minerals. So where do you get this nutritional support? It’s hard to get sufficient nutrition from food alone…

The problem with store-bought calcium supplements – aside from being rock-based- is that they’re a single element solution to a multi-nutrient problem. That’s because your bones are composed of 13 minerals. Calcium is just one of the minerals your bones needs. You also need zinc, magnesium, vanadium, strontium, silica, boron and more.  Each mineral plays a unique role in your bone’s health.

So, today’s emphasis on just one mineral is an oversight. Without other minerals present, calcium can’t even do its job! Why feed your bones one ingredient when in fact, they need much more?

That’s why we created a multi-nutrient calcium supplement. It’s actually taken directly from a plant-based superfood right from the pristine shorelines of South America.

This superfood is called Lithothamnion superpositum (or Algas calcareas as the locals call it). It’s a rare marine algae that mimics the mineral composition of your bones. Because it’s plant-based, the minerals your bones crave are already “pre-digested” by the algae. That means your body has a much easier time absorbing the nutrients, getting the full bone-building effect that lets us guarantee you increased bone density (or your money back).

This natural calcium supplement is called AlgaeCal Plus. The “Plus” means you get full clinical doses of added vitamins and minerals to ensure your body gets the most out of the AlgaeCal powder. There’s more than a full daily dose of vitamin D3. And the maximum allowable amount of magnesium. Even a full day’s worth of the most expensive vitamin on earth – which acts as an efficient calcium recycling plant for your bones – vitamin K2! Plus added vitamin C and boron make AlgaeCal Plus the natural solution your bones need to stay – or to get – healthy.

But there’s another trace mineral that you may have not heard of, it’s called Strontium. In its natural form (Strontium Citrate), Strontium helps stimulate bone-building cells while inhibiting natural bone resorption. This “double-whammy” is crucial to maintaining strong, healthy bone no matter your age.

In fact, Strontium is a powerful sidekick to our flagship AlgaeCal Plus supplement. Using Strontium with AlgaeCal Plus can at least triple the rate of your bone building over a year’s time! So we created our own “Bone Builder Pack” that completely stacks the odds in your bones’ favor. AlgaeCal Plus and Strontium Boost provides your bones with all the nutrients they need.

AlgaeCal Plus isn’t simply a calcium supplement that only provides you one element: Calcium. It’s a smorgasbord of over 70 vital bone-friendly minerals and plant nutrients. The best mother nature has to offer. (Complete with all the minerals we’ve mentioned here.) Combine it all with Strontium Boost, the only science-backed Strontium around- and you’ve got iron-clad protection for your bones every day!

AlgaeCal is Clinically Supported to Increase Bone Density

AlgaeCal Plus is clinically supported to increase your bone density. In one study published in the International Journal of Medical Sciences, 414 postmenopausal women each took different formulations of AlgaeCal Plus for 12 months. The result? The lowest average increase in bone density was 1.3%.⁸

In another study published in the same journal, 216 men and women took AlgaeCal Plus with our Strontium Boost supplement. In just 6 months, they saw an average increase of over 2% in bone density.⁹ Don’t forget, we lose bone density every year after age 40. And other calcium supplements at best only slow down the bone loss. But AlgaeCal Plus shows outright bone density increases!

Here’s the most amazing part: in AlgaeCal’s most recent clinical study, 172 women in their mid-60s increased bone density 7 consecutive years with the AlgaeCal Plus and Strontium Boost combo!¹⁰ On average they gained 1% a year, every year. Until now, this sort of result was unheard of. But it’s not only possible with our Bone Builder Packs, it’s guaranteed. No one should suffer from bone loss when we now have the means to naturally reclaim low bone density. It’s preventable when you know how to protect yourself every day.