[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/bone-drugs\/six-ways-standard-osteoporosis-treatment-is-dead-wrong-part-1\/#Article","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/bone-drugs\/six-ways-standard-osteoporosis-treatment-is-dead-wrong-part-1\/","headline":"6 ways standard osteoporosis treatment is dead wrong: Part 1","name":"6 ways standard osteoporosis treatment is dead wrong: Part 1","description":"Print PDF eBook Facebook Twitter Gmail LinkedIn Pinterest It\u2019s no secret that I\u2019m not a fan of the way bone drugs like Prolia\u00ae and Fosamax\u00ae are used these days. But people sometimes misinterpret my thinking as being \u201canti-drug\u201d \u2014 yet it\u2019s not just the drugs I object to. It\u2019s how medicine in general approaches bone […]","datePublished":"2020-02-17","dateModified":"2026-04-22","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/author\/brownbetterbonesgmail-com\/#Person","name":"Dr. Susan E. Brown, PhD","url":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/author\/brownbetterbonesgmail-com\/","identifier":72,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8e08d87bd45250c6616e1752933a6576aba077f335d97ee337a0cde5e435cbd3?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8e08d87bd45250c6616e1752933a6576aba077f335d97ee337a0cde5e435cbd3?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Center for Better Bones","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Better-Bones-AMP.png","url":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Better-Bones-AMP.png","width":150,"height":60}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/osteoporosis-treatment-1-BB-Blog-2-20.jpg","url":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/osteoporosis-treatment-1-BB-Blog-2-20.jpg","height":1109,"width":2120},"url":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/bone-drugs\/six-ways-standard-osteoporosis-treatment-is-dead-wrong-part-1\/","about":["Bone Drugs","Osteopenia","Osteoporosis"],"wordCount":908,"keywords":["Fracture","bone drugs","bone density"],"articleBody":" Print PDF eBook\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFacebook\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTwitter\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGmail\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLinkedIn\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tPinterest\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tIt\u2019s no secret that I\u2019m not a fan of the way bone drugs like Prolia\u00ae and Fosamax\u00ae are used these days. But people sometimes misinterpret my thinking as being \u201canti-drug\u201d \u2014 yet it\u2019s not just the drugs I object to. It\u2019s how medicine in general approaches bone health and fracture risk.I have at least 6 major objections to the standard approach, but for the sake of brevity, we\u2019ll look at them two at a time over the next three weeks.Table of ContentsToggle     4 Minutes Read1.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Treatment is based on bone mineral density \u2014 but bone mineral density does not predict fracture2.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The standard medical approach to osteoporosis is fear-based \u2014 and fear actually damages boneThis isn\u2019t all of course.\u00a0 See Part 2 here.1.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Treatment is based on bone mineral density \u2014 but bone mineral density does not predict fractureHaving a low-side bone density isn\u2019t actually a health problem. It doesn\u2019t hurt or limit mobility \u2014 it doesn\u2019t even necessarily mean the bones aren\u2019t strong! It\u2019s only when you fracture a bone that you have a health problem \u2014 and more, you cannot predict fracture by bone density alone. In fact, the majority of people whose bones are so fragile they experience a low-trauma fracture do not have an \u201costeoporotic\u201d bone density.That\u2019s why treating low bone density bones as a \u201cdisorder\u201d that \u201cneeds to be addressed\u201d with heavy-duty medications makes no sense. Weak bones, on the other hand, need intervention. And, as far as weak bones go, there\u2019s almost always an underlying problem causing the depletion of bone strength \u2014 whether it be nutritional, hormonal, bone-damaging medications, or some other hidden health condition or lifestyle factor. Properly detected and corrected these underlying causes can greatly reduce the risk of fracture. This is why a real fracture risk assessment and an assessment of underlying causes are so critical to developing a comprehensive bone-building program.2.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The standard medical approach to osteoporosis is fear-based \u2014 and fear actually damages boneGiven that a low-side bone density does not necessarily indicate weak bones, why do you suppose doctors are so adamant that people with a low-side bone density need treatment? They\u2019re afraid their patient will have a serious fracture.But fear of fractures is itself bone damaging and can be a self-fulfilling prophecy \u2014 literally, as studies have linked higher levels of stress and the stress hormone cortisol with osteoporosis and increased fracture risk. A recent Danish study, for example, showed that just the perception of stress \u2014 seeing yourself as stressed \u2014 increases risk of osteoporotic fracture by 68%. It is bad enough that we have so many reasons to fall into stress and worry, we really do not need our health professional piling on more stress with unfounded fears of fracture. Again, what’s needed is a fracture risk assessment leading to a comprehensive bone building program \u2014 one that includes stress reduction and hope.It\u2019s interesting to note that Traditional Chinese Medicine holds that bone health is determined by the \u201ckidney energy\u201d and that fear is the emotion that disrupts the kidney energetic system. (And even Western medicine links osteoporosis with renal disease because the kidneys play such a central role in vitamin D metabolism, mineral reabsorption, and acid-base balance. (As I have discussed before, when kidneys can\u2019t adequately buffer metabolic acids, calcium from bones is called upon to rescue essential pH homeostasis.) The ancient Chinese wisdom tradition suggests that the kidneys control bone and fear damages the kidneys \u2014 and I have found this to be true. All in all, we need less fear and more hope and bone-building solutions.This isn\u2019t all of course.\u00a0 See Part 2 here.[av_toggle_container initial=’0′ mode=’accordion’ sort=” styling=” colors=” font_color=” background_color=” border_color=” av_uid=’av-sp9h5t5e’ custom_class=”][av_toggle title=’References’ tags=” av_uid=’av-gfx96oya’] References:Adeva, M. M., and G. Souto. 2011. Diet-induced metabolic acidosis. Clinical Nutrition 30(4):416\u2013421.Azuma, K., Y. Adachi, H. Hayashi, and K. Y. Kubo. 2015. Chronic psychological stress as a risk factor of osteoporosis. Journal of UOEH 37(4):245\u2013253.H\u00e4ussler, B., H. Gothe, D. G\u00f6l, G. Glaeske, L. Pientka, and D. Felsenberg. 2007. Epidemiology, treatment and costs of osteoporosis in Germany: The BoneEVA Study. Osteoporosis International 18(1):77\u201384.Lu, Nan. 2010. Traditional Chinese medicine: A woman\u2019s guide to a hormone-free menopause. TCMWF Publishing, New York.Seeman, E., J. P. Devogelaer, R. Lorenc, T. Spector, K. Brixen, A. Balogh, G. Stucki, and J. Y. Reginster. 2008. Strontium ranelate reduces the risk of vertebral fractures in patients with osteopenia. Journal of Bone and Mineral Research 23(3):433\u2013438.Stone, K. L., D. G. Seeley, L. Y. Lui, J. A. Cauley, K. Ensrud, W. S. Browner, M. C. Nevitt, S. R. Cummings, and Osteoporosis Fractures Research Group. 2003. BMD at multiple sites and risk of fracture of multiple types: Long-term results from the Study of Osteoporotic Fractures. Journal of Bone and Mineral Research 18(11):1947\u20131954.Fosamax\u00ae is a registered trademark of Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc.Prolia\u00ae is a registered trademark of Amgen Inc.[\/av_toggle][\/av_toggle_container]For a complete guide to rebuilding bone naturally, see our resource on natural osteoporosis support and bone rebuilding.Learn how to interpret your results in our comprehensive guide to understanding your bone density test results.For natural support alongside any treatment, read our complete guide to bone health nutrition as a natural foundation."},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Bone Drugs","item":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/bone-drugs\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"6 ways standard osteoporosis treatment is dead wrong: Part 1","item":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/bone-drugs\/six-ways-standard-osteoporosis-treatment-is-dead-wrong-part-1\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]