Wellness

[SilleeMee]

@PilatesLover 

The brand is Bulksupplements. See my post #19 for more info. 

[Icegoddess]

Thanks @SilleeMee.  I already knew you took the silica supplements for hair and nails, but didn't know it would also help with bones.  I'll have to check into it.  I already take the Bulk Supplements Calcium Citrate and a Magnesium Glycinate powder since I have trouble swallowing even the smallest Calcium Citrate pill and all the pills contain Vitamin D which I'm already taking massive quantities of so don't want to add more.  

My ACA insurance won't cover Prolia and I don't know that I would qualify financially for ay help.  Lord knows we pay out the wazoo for my insurance AND have a large deductible on top of that.  I keep hearing these pundits talking about Medicare for all and how it would eliminate private insurance.  But, what I want to know is where are these private insurers?  I would jump on a cheap high deductible plan in a heartbeat if we could get it.  We have just one choice in our state.  I know other states have alternative insurers that aren't ACA compliant.  I could care less about ACA compliance.  

[quadmimi]

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@SilleeMee wrote:

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@quadmimi wrote:

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@SilleeMee wrote:

I'm 63 and several years ago, about 15 years or so,  I had a BD score of below -2.5. I was given one dose of yearly Rx Zometa and my score came up to a low score...osteopenia. I had a severe and adverse rare reaction to the Zometa so it was not prescribed any more.

I have since been consistently doing resistance exercise with stretch bands, taking more calcium and vit D. I also discovered silica (silicon) supplements and that has made my BD score normal. The silica is a bamboo silica extract powder that I take everyday...a heaping 1/4 teaspoon.  Don't confuse silicon with silicone...they are not the same thing.

Here is any interesting publication from the NIH regarding silica supplementation and bone density:

"SILICON AND BONE HEALTH"

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2658806/

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@SilleeMeeThanks for the info...do you have a certain silica you take? (brand)

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@quadmimi 

You're welcome. I buy Bulksupplements Bamboo Extract Powder from Amazon. Item number is B01LWBFI3H (type that number in the search box). 

The bamboo extract is a tasteless lightweight white, fluffy powder. It dissolves easily in any liquid and has a very slight grittiness to it but not uncomfortable to swallow. As a plus for me, this supplement has made my hair and nails grow faster and stronger. That was the original reason why I started taking it...the bone health part was discovered later.

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Thank you @SilleeMee  I will check this out..

[LilacTree]

I wouldn’t take an infusion of anything.  Some of them last a year.  That means the med is in your body, there’s no way to get it out, like you can just stop taking a pill.

If it doesn’t agree with you, or you have bad side effects, you have to wait it out.  

I don’t know if Prolia is a bisphosphonate, but many of the bone building meds are, and they often cause more bone issues like hips and jaw breakage than they cure.  Educate yourself before making this decision.  Get other medical opinions if you can.

ETA I just looked it up. It is not a bisphosphonate, but it can cause necrosis (death) of the jawbone, same as the bisphosphonates.  Ask your dentist rather than a doctor.

[on the bay]

Prolia is not a bisphosphonate, but the manufacturer issued warnings 2 years after it was launched with the same adverse effects of all the other osteoporosis drugs.Yet the FDA has still approved it.

 You can read the article:

"Prolia, Another Wonder Drug that Wasn't" from the Center For Health Journalism.

I have also read everything I can about this as I've taken all the previous osteo drugs and gotten too many side effects.

  Most women past a certain age (even those with osteopenia) have been advised by their doctor to take this. 

My mother has been on this for several years with no side effects that she knows of and her bone scan has shown improvement yet she has also broken a hip, and ribs several times while on it. She may have anyway, we don't know.

Yet I was afraid to try Prolia. 

After reading all the positive responses here I started reading again because I have severe osteoporosis.

I'm still at the same conclusion I had before. I'm just not going to take it. It was interesting to read about the silicon which is still early for a clear verdict but promising.

This is only part of the article on Prolia from Center for Health Journalism:

"Two years after its approval, Amgen issued warnings that Prolia could cause serious risks like "hypocalcemia, serious infections, suppression of bone turnover, including osteonecrosis of the jaw” as well as “atypical femoral fracture” and “dermatologic adverse events."  Notably, these are the same risks bisphosphonates bone drugs pose. Six months ago the International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Medicine also reported osteonecrosis of the jaw with Prolia."

note: Amgen is the manufactureer of Prolia.

I wish I could take it without any fears of other things due to taking it. 

I also read askapatient.com which is a website with patient reviews of drugs. Most are a 1 star rating for Prolia.

my daughter says people only write in when they have negative reviews but I have not found this to be true.

I used to say I would try anything once (and if results were not good or detrimental I could stop) but like others have said, it takes at least 6 months to leave your system and the side effects, particularly osteonecrosis of the jaw, is not always reversable and I need that like a hole in the head!

I had a longtime primary care doctor tell me he would never personally take statins.

So I do not trust a med just because a doctor says go ahead esp when they say oh there are rarely side effects and then if you have them often say, well they don't think it is due to the drug.

Even, well they had never heard that but then when you read reviews, you see many have had the same side effects!

I like to find a doctor I respect and work as a partner for my own health with them. I always ask questions and research before i decide.

I hope those who have seen results continue to have improvement and no side effects. Not everyone will have side effects, I'm just afraid I'd be one of them who does.

[Jaynah]

SilleeMee - thank you for the brand name of the silica!

Followup on my endocrinologist apppointment I had this morning: I asked her about Silica and bone health and she said she didn't know anything about it. 

[SilleeMee]

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@Jaynah wrote:

SilleeMee - thank you for the brand name of the silica!

Followup on my endocrinologist apppointment I had this morning: I asked her about Silica and bone health and she said she didn't know anything about it. 

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@Jaynah 

I think that is typical of the doctors these days. They are not well educated in the field of diet and nutrition when it comes to health issues. A Rx med is what they have been trained to give rather than advice about what we eat.

[PilatesLover]

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@SilleeMee wrote:

@PilatesLover 

The brand is Bulksupplements. See my post #19 for more info. 

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Thank you! I misread ... interpreted that you "buy it in bulk." LOL.

[Financialgrl]

Been on Prolia since 2012 and no real noticeable change till my Dexa 2 years ago and there was a marked improvement.  I battled an extremely aggressive cancer and the drug I take to prevent a recurrence causes bone loss which is why I need Prolia and have been on it so long.  

My Prolia experience was not originally a good one.  It made my bones/joints ache and I couldn't keep food down.  I called the oncologist who told me to take generic acid reflux reducer meds beginning a week before my Prolia shot and for about 3 days after the shot.  I take Alleve for a few days after the shot to help with the bone/joint pain.  If I do that, I can go about my normal activities.

Back when I first got a Prolia shot the oncologist office told me that it was expensive and gave me a number to call for copay assistance (I never asked for help but when I called the number, I was only asked one question - why am I taking Prolia).  The question was asked bc they were tracking the cancer patients separately (they said it's at an aggregate level using no names) from others who may be on the drug.  I get a medical MasterCard that the oncologist's office keeps on file and my cost for that visit is the normal office visit cost and $25 for the Prolia shot.  Amgen picks up the bill for the remaining cost of the drug.