ALEXANDRIA, Va., Nov 17, 2005 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- The American Medical
Women's Association (AMWA) today issued physician recommendations to generate
greater understanding of the role of vitamin D in bone health in women and men
over 50, calling for an increase in currently recommended vitamin D intake and
encouraging individualized treatment in patients. According to an analysis
published in 2004 and based on the Third National Health and Nutrition
Examination Survey (NHANES III), over 70 percent of women ages 51-70 and nearly
90 percent of women over 70 are not getting the recommended adequate intake of
vitamin D. For this reason, AMWA recently convened a panel of experts to discuss
the importance of vitamin D for overall bone health, the challenges of ensuring
adequate vitamin D intake and how to best communicate this information to
primary care physicians, specialists and patients.
Vitamin D, an essential component in bone health, helps ensure that the body
absorbs and retains calcium, which is critical for building strong, healthy
bones. Vitamin D deficiency has often been linked to osteoporosis, a condition
that affects more than 10 million Americans and threatens 34 million others.
"We agreed that there is a need for increased awareness of the role of vitamin D
in osteoporosis treatment," said Felicia Cosman, MD, clinical director of the
National Osteoporosis Foundation and associate professor of clinical medicine at
Columbia University School of Medicine, and chair of the expert panel. "These
recommendations will serve to call attention to the high prevalence of vitamin D
deficiency and help ensure that patients, particularly women and men over 50,
receive optimal care for bone health."
The panel outlined the following action points regarding vitamin D and its role
in bone health for physicians treating women and men over 50, including:
* Optimum treatment for bone health should be individualized and may
include a combination of exercise, healthy diet, vitamin D and calcium
supplements, and potentially, prescription medications.
* Women and men over 50 receiving treatment for osteoporosis need to
receive adequate vitamin D. Supplements are recommended as one of the
best sources of vitamin D.
* Current daily vitamin D intake requirements for women and men over 50
should be increased to 800-1,000 International Units (IU).
An Increase in Current Vitamin D Intake
Current recommendations from the Institute of Medicine (IOM) for vitamin D
intake are 400 IU for women and men ages 51-70 and 600 IU for women and men over
70. The roundtable panelists expressed concern that current recommendations do
not provide for optimal bone health and recommended that intake levels be
increased to 800-1,000 IU per day for patients over age 50. In addition to the
government data that found 70-90 percent of postmenopausal women are not taking
the recommended adequate intake of vitamin D, an additional study found that
over half of postmenopausal women already being treated for osteoporosis have
inadequate levels of vitamin D, underscoring the need for more aggressive
treatment guidelines and greater overall awareness of the role of vitamin D in
bone health.
"The recommendations we provided are designed as a guide for primary care
physicians and specialists and are sufficient for most patients. However, some
patients may need to obtain serum levels of vitamin D, as determined by their
physician, to ascertain vitamin D adequacy. Vitamin D deficiency should
ultimately be treated on a patient-by-patient basis," said Kimberly Templeton,
MD, AMWA representative and associate professor of orthopedic surgery at the
Kansas University Medical Center and fellow of the American Academy of
Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS). "I encourage people to speak to their physicians
about whether vitamin D supplementation may be appropriate. In addition,
patients can access an online brochure on the AMWA web site to learn more about
the role of vitamin D in overall bone health."
Obtaining Adequate Levels of Vitamin D
Vitamin D is produced in the body after exposure to UVB rays. Indeed,
individuals can obtain over 90 percent of vitamin D through sun exposure, but
the panel agreed that this is becoming increasingly difficult as a result of the
wide use of sunscreen and protective clothing, due to concerns about skin cancer
and other skin diseases, aging and geographic limitations. Vitamin D is also
found naturally in a limited number of foods, such as fatty fish, and in certain
fortified foods such as milk, orange juice and ready-to-eat cereal. However,
many of these foods are not part of most people's diets or must be consumed in
large volumes to meet the requirement. Therefore, supplements were recommended
as one of the best sources of vitamin D for many older Americans.
In using supplements, the panel advised that physicians should help their
patients choose the supplement that is right for them by explaining the medical
terms associated with the different forms of vitamin D.
Although bone health was the primary focus of the recommendations, the panelists
also reviewed other research studies published in the recent months that reflect
on vitamin D's ability to potentially protect against lymphoma and cancers of
the prostate, breast, colon, ovary and other cancers, and noted that a variety
of research is currently underway to examine the effects of vitamin D on other
health conditions.
The Fundamentals of Vitamin D in Bone Health
Vitamin D plays an important role in building and maintaining healthy bones by
promoting calcium absorption. Suboptimal levels of vitamin D are associated with
reduced calcium absorption, bone loss and an increased risk for osteoporosis --
a condition characterized by low bone mass, bone fragility and susceptibility to
fractures, especially of the hip and spine. In fact, the first-ever Bone Health
and Osteoporosis: A Report of the Surgeon General (2004) listed vitamin D, along
with calcium and physical activity, as the three key elements to maintaining
optimal bone health. Based on relevant clinical practice experience and
involvement in various research that highlights the role of vitamin D in bone
health, the panel concluded that it is of paramount importance that vitamin D be
considered in patients being treated for osteoporosis and other bone diseases.
To find out more about the recommendations and vitamin D's role in bone health,
talk to your physicians or visit http://www.amwa-doc.org to view/download an
online patient brochure.
About AMWA
The American Medical Women's Association (AMWA) -- Founded in 1915 as the oldest
and largest only national medical association dedicated to women physicians,
residents and medical students, AMWA today represents a community of
professionals working to promote health, encourage the professional and personal
development of those in medicine, healthcare and health-related fields and
provide a range of educational, charitable and awards programs that make a
difference.
AMWA believes that medical decisions should be the decision of a woman and her
health care provider based on her individual needs. AMWA does not endorse
specific products or services.
Funding for this initiative has been provided by Merck & Co., Inc.
SOURCE The American Medical Women's Association
CONTACT: Jill Birdwhistell Pierce, PhD, of American Medical Women's Association,
+1-703-838-0500, Ext. 3323, jpierce@amwa-doc.org; or Bora Lee, of Cohn & Wolfe
Healthcare, +1-212-798-9522, bora_lee@cohnwolfe.com
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