Jennifer Matthews: Carole Mason has always enjoyed her milk.
Carole Mason: Milk is my favorite beverage. If I am anywhere, in a restaurant or whatever, I'll order milk.
Jennifer Matthews: And her diet is high in calcium.
Carole Mason: Yogurt, cheese vegetables. I've always eaten a lot of tuna, salmon.
Jennifer Matthews: Calcium is especially important for Carole now. She has early stage osteoporosis. Around 10 million Americans have osteoporosis. Another 34 million are at increased risk.
Dr. Diane Biskobing: There is a constant bone loss and bone formation and it's usually balanced. Somebody gets osteoporosis when the bone loss or bone resorption becomes excessive.
Jennifer Matthews: Traditional osteoporosis medications stop bone breakdown. Now, researchers say they may have a better treatment.
Dr. Diane Biskobing: This drug stimulates the cell that forms new bone. So it's actually causing these cells to lay down new bone.
Jennifer Matthews: The drug is parathyroid hormone. Early studies show it increases bone density 10 to 14 percent. Without treatment, menopausal women can lose 2 percent of their bone density per year.
Dr. Diane Biskobing: This would give us an option to use in people with very severe osteoporosis and a new option in people who've fractured despite being on the standard therapies.
Jennifer Matthews: For women on the go, the treatment could offer help where a calcium-rich lifestyle has come up short. This is Jennifer Matthews reporting.
Transcription by:
Scribe4you Transcription Services