Many patients who visit our osteoporosis clinic also have gout, a painful type of inflammatory arthritis. In order to help them manage their illness, we recently produced and published an info sheet outlining important dietary considerations for people with gout. You can find it on our Patient Materials page or click the image on the left. … Continue reading New publication for gout patients
Category: Educate yourself
Meeting your calcium needs from food vs supplements
We spoke to Dr. Maryam S Hamidi, our nutrition researcher, about the controversy around calcium supplements and why it is better to get your calcium from food. Dr. Hamidi also advised us on the best foods to eat when trying to meet our daily calcium needs. A little more about Dr. Hamidi: She completed her … Continue reading Meeting your calcium needs from food vs supplements
A note on repeat bone density testing
A new study published in The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) looks at the usefulness of bone mineral density (BMD) testing and a repeated BMD test. BMD testing is done to help predict a person's risk of future osteoporotic fractures. A good overview of the study can be found here. The study authors conclude that "a second … Continue reading A note on repeat bone density testing
Does it taste ‘calciumy’? (part 2)
In the study we described in our previous post (linking bitterness of vegetables to their calcium content), Dr. Michael Tordoff and his team of researchers also ran some additional tests in rodents. They found that lab mice which were previously known to prefer calcium ate collards (high calcium food) more than they ate cabbage (low … Continue reading Does it taste ‘calciumy’? (part 2)
Does it taste ‘calciumy’? (part 1)
Some vegetables are hard to eat, no matter how health-conscious you might be. Hardly anyone professes kale or collards to be their favourite foods. Perhaps due to the bitterness of these and other vegetables, people generally do not eat enough vegetables. We also know that in general, many people do not get enough calcium in … Continue reading Does it taste ‘calciumy’? (part 1)
Race against vitamin D – the ‘heart’ of the matter
Vitamin D is one of those crucial vitamins that can impact many areas of your health if you are not getting a sufficient amount. Apart from damage to bone health, vitamin D deficiency has also been implicated in other conditions including heart disease, certain cancers and autoimmune diseases, diabetes, and Alzheimer’s disease. Today we turn … Continue reading Race against vitamin D – the ‘heart’ of the matter
Exercise on trial (part 2)
In our last post, we reviewed the existing evidence on whether exercise can prevent fractures by looking at the results of a recently published meta-analysis (a type of study where results are combined from different trials). We concluded that at this time we do not have definite proof to say that exercise reduces fracture risk. … Continue reading Exercise on trial (part 2)
Exercise on trial (part 1)
If you have osteoporosis or are concerned about your bone health, one of the pieces of advice you may have received is to exercise regularly. Like the end goal of any osteoporosis treatment, the hope is that exercise will prevent fractures, which occur easily when bones are weak and fragile. In fact, more than 80% … Continue reading Exercise on trial (part 1)
All you ever wanted to know about osteoporosis
Well, almost all: two of our research team members here at the Osteoporosis Program, Dr. Marta Erlandson, PhD and Dr. Maryam S. Hamidi, PhD, along with Jennifer Weldon from Osteoporosis Canada, were invited to give a talk on osteoporosis for the Monthly Patient Education Talk Series at the Toronto Western Hospital. Marta's talk focused on … Continue reading All you ever wanted to know about osteoporosis
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