Does alendronate help the bones

Would you care to share more information that would help this group respond?
What is your most recent dexa results?
What is your age?
Have you been tested for any possible secondary causes? Secondary because, for most women menopause and loss of hormones is the primary cause.
How many months or years have you been menopausal?
Do you take any form of hormone replacement? If so, what?
Have you had any fractures that are menopause related?
Are you being treated by a doctor who is experienced and trained in treating osteoporosis such as an endocrinologist or rheumatologist or another type of physician
How much of your own research have you done already?
Thanks in advance.

zaileigh, alendronate works by attaching to your bone. When the cells that remove fissured or otherwise damaged bone try to attach they and the alendronate are destroyed. What happens is that for some reason (usually lower estradiol levels) we have more cells that destroy bone than cells that build bone. Our bones can't rebuild fast enough to keep up with the removal. The bone we preserve is not as strong as it would be with a medication like Forteo or Tymlos that increase removal but increase replacement to a greater degree.
The many endocrinologists are recommending starting to address bone loss with a bone builder and following it with a drug like alendronate.
Welcome to Connect.

Alendronate is often the first drug tried for osteopenia/osteoporosis. It slows bone breakdown by acting on the osteoclasts (the cells that break down old bone) by reducing their numbers. It can help a lot, particularly in the first two to three years. It's not a drug you can take for a long time, though, so you may need something else eventually if it doesn't increase your bone density.

You can also address lifestyle and make sure you are on a nutritionally solid diet (eating minimally processed foods, ensuring you get enough calcium through your diet, eating enough protein, minimizing sugar , etc.) and exercising including resistance (weight) training, and weight bearing activity.

Depending on your T-score, some doctors are going straight to an anabolic drug like Tymlos or Forteo to build lost bone. This is usually when T-scores are lower than -2.5, indicating severe osteoporosis.

Good luck to you! I think the prescriptions are more effective than nutrition alone and more effective than the non-prescription supplements.

My first Dexa scan, at age 67, showed lumbar spine -3.7 while both hips had low osteopenia. After 2.5 years of alendronate, plus eating more calcium rich foods, continued vitamin D supplementation and continued exercise (walking plus lifting weights), my lumbar spine stayed at -3.7 and hips improved to -1.9. Now I’ve taken Tymlos for 5 months, added physical therapy targeting spine fracture prevention, increased weight training, added 15 mg 3 times a day of vitamin K-2, and hope to schedule another Dexa in less than a year and a half.

So alendronate probably helped my hips improve and did not change my spine. I have not had any side effects from Tymlos or from alendronate.

The calcium and Vitamin D alone will not do what biophosphates do for your bones. They help build a more solid bone structure over a specified period of time. Then the medicine must be stopped or a holiday and then re-evaluation to determine next steps after a Dexa scan is repeated. Why is your reason for not wanting to take it? I just completed my 5 years.

@walkesu
Thank you for the response I’ve been overwhelmed knowing what to take or do so k2 is protein you just add more correct and do you take any collagen I had bought algaecal collagen but haven’t started taking it

@jenatsky
I guess all the reviews I read and it says it just structure your bone it doesn’t rebuild inside the bones that are brittle am I correct please advice me

@oopsiedaisy
Yes I have -2.9 on hip so I’m really scared I’m very overwhelmed and it gets depressing

@gravity3
I’m 56 my dexa scan came back
Spine -2.3
Left hip neck -2.7 total -2.1
Right hip neck -2.9 total -.2.3
Just got on comb patch a month ago when I got my score results along with alendronate menospause probably since I was 50 stop periods I am scheduled to see a rheumatologist in February 2027 I guess on research I’m everywhere

@gravity3
I forgot yes I had a wrist fracture where I needed surgery but I was on step stool and slid and feel pretty hard on my right side and landed on wrist and broke it but my right side hip does hurt but just started when I started taking the medication and lower waist hurts when I finish light exercises is tht normal