Bone density loss and prednisone

@jabrown0407
Yes, thank you- for sure milk must not be only calcium product in one’s diet. Kale and a multitude of veg necessary plus fish, nuts and cheese. Note that spinach inhibits absorption of calcium. But testing for D levels a good idea too.

@janetilley I have been told by multiple doctors that there is close to a national epidemic of vitamin D deficiency caused by using SPF products plus staying out of the sun in general. Apparently, they are finding the problem in infants to geriatrics - no age discrimination here. I have become a believe that everyone should have a vitamin D test annually at a minimum. I have had melanoma so no way if getting a suntan a portion of my lifestyle any longer. It was the vitamin D deficiency that led us to uncovering my hyperparathyroidism.

I had a regularly scheduled DEXA scan 14 months after starting prednisone at 15mg to start, and at the time down to 1or 2 mg. I had been taking alendronate for osteoporosis for 4 years at that point. My result was close enough to unchanged from 4 years earlier to be considered acceptable, but since it was a tiny bit worse my doctor called and asked me to start adding load bearing exercises to my physical therapy.
I have been off of prednisone and finished with PT for a while now, and have continued my exercise program at home. My next DEXA is due in July of 2026. At that point it will be 5 years on alendronate, so I will have to stop that regardless. I'm sure they will have something else to throw at me if needed... Best of luck, everyone.

There are two foods that you can eat that help increase bone density, blueberries and prunes. I know this sounds crazy, but there have been studies done. Because I am new to MayoConnect, they won't let me post the links to the studies. But search under prunes and blueberries for osteoporosis and you should find the articles.

The article on blueberries is entitled: Dietary Polyphenols, Berries, and Age-Related Bone Loss: A Review Based on Human, Animal, and Cell Studies
The research on prunes was done at Penn State and is published on their website with the title: Got prunes? Prunes may preserve bone density and strength in older women

Before I was diagnosed with GCA, I made a concerted effort to increase my bone density because of a family history of osteoporosis. I lifted light weights, lots of reps, 3-4 times per week, ate 1000mg of calcium in foods, and ate 1/3 cup of wild blueberries every morning. I increased my bone density by 1.2% over two years. Now that I am on high dose prednisone, I have upped my weight lifting to nearly every day and am including 6 prunes per day in my diet. I hope I can stave off bone loss until I can get my Actemra prescription filled and taper off of prednisone. I've also stopped consuming alcohol. It has a deleterious effect on bone density.

Welcome @purplebike, Since new members are prevented from sharing links for a short period of time to prevent spammers and advertisers from posting, I thought I would share the 2 reference articles you mentioned for you.
-- Dietary Polyphenols, Berries, and Age-Related Bone Loss: A Review Based on Human, Animal, and Cell Studies: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4665444/
-- Got prunes? Prunes may preserve bone density and strength in older women:
https://www.psu.edu/news/research/story/got-prunes-prunes-may-preserve-bone-density-and-strength-older-women
It sounds like you have a great plan for helping maintain your bone density while managing the GCA. There are many different discussions on tapering, Actemra and other topics if you would like to search through the discussions in the PMR support group. Here's a list of discussions in the group - https://connect.mayoclinic.org/group/polymyalgia-rheumatica-pmr/.

How is your prednisone tapering going?

@johnbishop Thank you for posting the links.
I just started tapering prednisone, going from 60mg/day to 50mg. So I don't have much of an experience yet. I have looked extensively at the discussions and found the info helpful. Thanks.

Hello @purplebike,

You are correct that new members are not able to post links. However, I can help share the links to research studies you were trying to share:

"Dietary Polyphenols, Berries, and Age-Related Bone Loss: A Review Based on Human, Animal, and Cell Studies"
- https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4665444/
-----------
"Got prunes? Prunes may preserve bone density and strength in older women"
- https://www.psu.edu/news/research/story/got-prunes-prunes-may-preserve-bone-density-and-strength-older-women

@JustinMcClanahan Thanks!

I had a dexa scan last week. I've been having them every two years for a long time now. Seven years of taking prednisone for pmr . I started at 20mg. I also have had bouts of cppd . And osteoarthritis. At 2.5mg right now. Getting below 3mg has been a problem.
The first scan I had after the pmr diagnosis my osteopenia was a little worse. I opted to try Reclast, an infusion. I had two doses a year apart. My numbers improved and the last two scans still indicate osteopenia but the recommendation is to maintain a healthy lifestyle and do weight bearing exercises. I'm holding off on the Reclast to avoid the possible side effects.
I'm drinking unsweetened oat milk. I like that it's non dairy and has no sugar..It has a good amount of calcium. I found a brand of cottage cheese that is low fat and lower sodium than regular cottage cheese. I also have a slice of cheese with lunch. I take 1000 units of D3 with breakfast and dinner.

I had to “double-take” to make sure that i hadn’t written that.