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BEST Program Reduces Osteoporosis Risk for
Postmenopausal Women
Study confirms earlier finds on value
of weight exercise, calcium citrate
 Feb. 2, 2006 Researchers have once again looked
at the Bone Estrogen Strength Training (BEST) Study at The University of
Arizona a landmark study on how strength training affects changes in
bone density in postmenopausal women. The most recent study confirms the
findings that a specific regimen of weight-bearing and resistance
exercises, combined with calcium citrate supplement over four years,
provided significant improvement in bone mineral density (BMD) at key
skeletal sites, whether or not the women were on hormone therapy (HT).
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BEST Study
Demonstration On How Older Women Reduced
Osteoporosis Risk With Exercise, Calcium
Surgeon General's bone health report spurs action
Nov.
17, 2004 A study completed in 2001 is getting new attention since the
U.S. Surgeon General issued his warning that half the population is at
risk of osteoporosis unless action is taken. Leaders in fitness and
nutrition are demonstrating today in Manhattan exactly how older women
in the BEST Study, a four-year investigation conducted at the University
of Arizona, improved their bone mineral density using calcium and
weight-bearing exercise. More... 11/17/04*
World Osteoporosis Day Puts Emphasis on Exercise
New report, 'Move it or Lose it,' starts three-year
lifestyle campaign
Oct. 20, 2005 Today is World Osteoporosis Day and
the International Osteoporosis Foundation is placing the emphasis on the
value of exercise in building strong bones. To recognize the event, the
organization today released online a new publication Move it or Lose
it: How exercise helps to build and maintain strong bones, prevents
falls and fractures and speed rehabilitation.
Read more...
Mild Aerobic
Exercise No Protection From Osteoporosis
Muscle strength,
abdominal fat linked to bone mineral density
Oct. 31, 02 - While day-to-day
physical activities such as walking, housework and shopping may be
good for your heart, they don't do much for your bones, according to a
Johns Hopkins study. Click
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The findings from this four-year study indicate
that the protective measures of adequate calcium supplementation and
resistance exercise improve bone mineral density. Women can lose 10 to
20 percent of their BMD as they age, (80% of those affected by
osteoporosis are women), but the researchers found that on average women
following the exercise and calcium regimen not only did not lose bone
density, but increased it by 1 to 2 percent.
Osteoporosis International, the leading clinical
publication on the disease, published the data. (For earlier report, see
sidebar on "Related Stories.")
"The good news is these long-term data confirmed
the potent combination of improved nutrition and increased physical
activity to prevent bone loss. The extended use of calcium
supplementation and exercise counteracted the typical loss of BMD in
women at this age, in a regimen that women really can stick with," said
Timothy Lohman, PhD, principal investigator for the study, director of
the UA Center for Physical Activity and Nutrition (CPAN) and UA
professor of physiology.
"This is quite significant for younger women as
well, as these exercises and calcium supplementation can help build peak
BMD which may prevent health problems and osteoporosis in the future."
BEST Study Co-Investigator Lauve Metcalfe, MS,
director of Program Development and Community Outreach for CPAN and an
exercise interventionist with the UA Department of Physiology, added,
"What sets this regimen apart is the six specific exercises that help
build bone in the wrist, hip and spine--three key fracture sites. This
type of weight-bearing exercise now is proven to be beneficial and
represents a shift in prior bone health recommendations. It previously
was thought that any type of exercise was helpful, but now we understand
that resistance and weight-bearing exercise are essential."
BEST Study participants were coached in specific
exercises aimed at building bone in key fracture points of the wrist,
hip and spine. Mission Pharmacal Company supplied Citracal calcium
citrate for the study.
Women were encouraged to take two Citracal tablets
twice a day, morning and evening, to ensure at least 800 mg of calcium.
The balance of the remaining recommended dietary allowance (RDA) of
1,000 mg per day was to be supplied by their food intake. The women who
regularly took the recommended level of 800 mg of calcium supplement
daily and continued to consume calcium in their meals showed greater
improvement than those who consumed less than the RDA, and women who
kept up the with the exercises showed greater improvement than less
frequent exercisers. In addition, the study reinforced evidence that
long-term, consistent calcium intake and exercise are valuable, as they
provided significant improvement in BMD. The UA investigators developed
the BEST regimen, which they found effective in building bone in
typically vulnerable areas. The regimen includes six core exercises:
Leg Press
One-arm Military Press
Seated Row
Wall Squat and Smith Squat
Back Extension
Lat Pull Down
Study participants did two sets of six-to-eight
repetitions, three times a week. Sevento-ten minutes of cardiovascular
weight-bearing activity, such as stair climbing, treadmill walking with
a weighted vest and postural stretches, round out the study regimen.
Participants lifted increasingly heavier weights, with the amount of
weight lifted in correct form emphasized over number of repetitions.
Building BMD is important in preventing
osteoporosis, which often results in fractures of the hip, spine and
wrist. Adequate calcium intake and exercise throughout life help prevent
bone loss, and these measures also can help the millions of Americans
already diagnosed. The best treatment is prevention, and women of all
ages should be concerned about their bone health and take action to stay
active and improve their nutrition and bone strength.
About Citracal
Calcium Citrate Citracal is the trademark name of a highly soluble
calcium citrate supplement. Many physicians recommend Citracal calcium
citrate as one of the best absorbed, most easily digestible forms of
supplemental calcium. Go to
www.citracal.com for more information on Citracal and to see visuals
of the BEST exercises.
About Mission Pharmacal Company
Mission Pharmacal Company, the makers of Citracalฎ brand of calcium
citrate supplement, is a family-owned pharmaceutical company based in
San Antonio, TX.
About the BEST Study
The most extensive study of its kind in the United States, the Bone
Estrogen Strength Training (BEST) Study began in 1995 to examine how
strength-training exercise affects changes in bone density in two groups
of postmenopausal women: those on hormone therapy (HT) and those who
were not. All participants took Citracalฎ calcium citrate supplements,
provided by Mission Pharmacal Company, twice daily to provide 800 mg of
calcium a day. The women were randomized to either a control group or an
exercise group. Those in the exercise group performed supervised
aerobic, weight-bearing and weightlifting exercises, three times per
week in community-based exercise facilities.
The first results showed that weight-bearing and
resistance exercises over a 12-month period, combined with Citracal
calcium supplementation, significantly improved bone mineral density at
skeletal sites at risk for osteoporotic fractures in postmenopausal
women (Osteoporosis International, September 2003). HT was most
successful at maintaining or increasing bone mineral density, although
exercise without HT also showed positive results.
During the first year, the study examined 266
Tucson-area women, ages 45-65, who were three to 10 years
postmenopausal;167 remained in the study through the fourth year
(Osteoporosis International, December 2005). Study investigators are
continuing to track the participants to observe the long-term effects of
exercise on fracture risk in post-menopausal women.
Funded by a grant from the National Institute for
Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases of the National
Institutes of Health, the BEST Study was a cooperative effort by The
University of Arizona (UA) College of Medicine Department of Physiology,
UA Department of Nutritional Sciences, UA College of Agriculture and
Life Sciences, UA College of Medicine Department of Family and Community
Medicine, UA Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, University
Medical Center Wellness Program, Fitness & Health Institute of Tucson
(FIT), Naturally Women Fitness Centers, Metro Fitness and Mission
Pharmacal Company of San Antonio, Texas.
The BEST Study findings led to the development of
The BEST Exercise Program for Osteoporosis Prevention (The BEST Book),
to provide guidelines for exercise that will make a difference in bone
health. To order a copy of The BEST Book, contact the UA Center for
Physical Activity and Nutrition (CPAN) at
www.cpanarizona.org or email Michele Graves, UA Department of
Physiology, at
mgraves@u.arizona.edu.
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