Do non-steroidal drugs help treat Osteoporosis?
There are a number of pharmaceutical drugs being used to treat osteoporosis, none of which work very well, and all of which have unpleasant side effects. One of the best known is Fosamax, a biphosphonate drug that can slow bone loss. Unfortunately, the old bone which is saved by using fosamax is eventually structurally unsound, and after three or four years it has no benefit, and in fact perhaps tends to increase the rate of hip fracture after about five years. For awhile fluoride was being touted as an osteoporosis drug, but like Fosamax, it only slows bone loss temporarily, and the long term consequence is an increased rate of hip fracture due to structurally unsound bone. Another conventional medicine osteoporosis drug is called Calcitonin-salmon (Calcimar). This is a hormone made by the thyroid gland that can temporarily slow bone loss. Again, the long term side effects are not well known, and its effectiveness diminishes rapidly after a few years.
