newjerseynewsroom.com

BY BOB HOLT

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

There are around 40 million Americans with osteoporosis or at risk of having it, and about 80 percent of those are women.

But a new study may have found a medication to help the bone density of post-menopausal women that they will enjoy a lot more than calcium. Researchers at Oregon State University studied 40 early-postmenopausal women with no history of bone fractures related to osteoporosis who had one or two drinks a day regularly.

When the women stopped drinking alcohol for two weeks, they saw increased rates of bone turnover, where bone is lost or replaced, according to CBS Philly. But after they returned to moderate drinking, the bone density levels returned to a normal rate.

According to Science Daily, earlier studies have shown that moderate drinkers have a higher bone density than people who don’t drink or those who drink heavily. The researchers said that alcohol seemed to have the same effect as estrogen in reducing bone turnover.

The researchers said they saw chemicals decrease that indicated bone turnover within 12-14 hours after resuming alcohol consumption. Lead author Urszula Iwaniec said, according to TIME.com, “Drinking moderately as part of a healthy lifestyle that includes a good diet and exercise may be beneficial for bone health, especially in postmenopausal women. After less than 24 hours to see such a measurable effect was unexpected.”

She told WebMD that more than 90% of the women in the study were wine drinkers, and they had an average of 1.4 drinks a day.

The important word is moderation in drinking. Heavy drinking can cause fractures and other problems for obvious reasons. The Globe and Mail reminds us that too much alcohol increases the risk for some cancers, high blood pressure, heart problems or liver ailments.