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MSM

Health News Archive 266 - Bone Metabolism
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Silicon Enhances Calcium's Bone Benefits

Silicon boosts the ability of calcium and vitamin D to build bone mineral density (BMD) in people suffering from osteoporosis or osteopenia (lower than normal bone density), according to a team of British researchers led by Tim Spector, M.D., of St. Thomas Hospital in London.

This new study was presented at the 27th annual conference of the American Society of Bone and Mineral Research. 

The study focused on a group of 114 women with a mean age of 61, who suffered either osteoporosis or osteopenia.  The women were divided into four groups, over a 12-month period.  The placebo group received the standard recommended daily dose of calcium and vitamin D3 for osteopenia and mild osteoporosis.  They received 1,000 mg of calcium and 800 IU of vitamin D3.  The other three groups also received either 3, 6, or 12 mg of elemental silicon as choline-stabilized orthosilicic acid (ch-OSA).

Dr Spector said there was an overall trend for orthosilicic acid to confer additional benefits to calcium and vitamin D3 supplementation, based on improvements in markers of bone formation.

"This study suggests that combined therapy of orthosilicic acid plus calcium and vitamin D3 is a safe, well tolerated treatment that has a potentially beneficial effect on bone turnover, especially bone collagen, and possibly femoral bone mineral density, compared to calcium and vitamin D-3 alone," concluded the report.