Strontium and Your Bones

 This is very promising for those of us who cannot take the harsher drugs for osteoporosis. My Naturopathic Doctor has me on the Strontium Citrate, so we will see if it helps. It is all natural with no side effects.

(Berkeley Wellness)

There’s plenty of scientific interest in strontium as a possible treatment for osteoporosis. Available as a prescription drug in Europe, strontium is sold only as a dietary supplement in the U.S. Is it ready for prime time?

Strontium is a chemical element, discovered in the 1700s near the Scottish village of Strontian. Most people who’ve heard the name associate it with strontium-90, a radioactive product of nuclear fission and a component of fallout. It caused a lot anxiety in the years when nuclear weapons were regularly tested. This radioactive particle can actually destroy bone. But strontium itself is not radioactive or toxic in any way. It is indeed reactive—that is, it easily combines with oxygen, and is widely used in fireworks. It occurs naturally in small amounts in soil, drinking water, and food. It is not classified as a nutrient, but the human body can absorb it and use it as if it were calcium.

Europe has been in the forefront of strontium research. Large-scale clinical trials conducted in Belgium and France have shown that strontium ranelate can delay bone breakdown and promote bone growth; it also reduces hip and vertebral fractures in older women. It may be even more effective for the very elderly.

Some researchers have concluded that strontium ranelate should be a first-line treatment for postmenopausal osteoporosis. In 2009, the Cochrane Collaboration, which independently evaluates medical research, reviewed four studies of strontium ranelate and concluded that it did increase bone mineral density. But there were worries about side effects, such as diarrhea and possibly blood clots or seizures. Not enough is known about long-term safety.

Though no prescription form of strontium is available in the U.S., you can buy strontium as a dietary supplement—usually strontium citrate. But supplements are virtually unregulated, so you don’t know what’s in them, or how much you might need. And supplements do not contain the same formulation as the prescription drug used in other countries. Some people think strontium supplements ought to be combined with calcium, but there’s no evidence this would work better. Researchers at the University of California, Davis, are now studying strontium citrate supplements, comparing them with calcium and vitamin D.

We think the picture looks promising for strontium as a prescription treatment for osteoporosis and perhaps as a supplement—though it will take more research to know for sure. For now, if you have osteoporosis, continue to follow standard advice, which includes taking calcium and vitamin D, along with any drug your doctor may have prescribed, and getting regular weight-bearing exercise.