Osteoporosis Society of Canada Guidelines
The OSC Guidelines[1] were published in 2002 to provide a comprehensive, evidence-based overview of osteoporosis diagnosis and management. One of us (SW) chaired the scientific advisory council on nutrition in which a formal review of approximately 1,000 papers was made. A summary of the dietary recommendations for osteoporosis prevention and treatment is provided in Table 1 . Some nutrients were missed from consideration (e.g., potassium and vitamin A) or not known to be important (e.g., vitamin B12). It is gratifying, three years later, to say with certainty that none of the OSC recommendations have been contradicted.
Occurring at the same time as the development of the OSC guidelines was the Institute of Medicine's revision of the American recommended dietary allowances (RDAs), which included consideration of tolerable upper levels of intake (UL). Canada was a full participant in this process known as the dietary reference intakes (DRIs).[2,3,4,5,6] An important distinction between DRIs and practice guidelines is that the former provide public health recommendations for populations and healthy individuals, while the latter are primarily patient-oriented. This article provides recommendations that are patient-oriented, where possible. When sufficient evidence-based data are lacking, the appropriate DRIs[2,3,4,5,6] are used to provide nutrient intake suitable for healthy individuals.
Geriatrics and Aging. 2005;8(9):14-20. © 2005 1453987 Ontario, Ltd.
Cite this: Nutritional Interventions in Osteoporosis - Medscape - Oct 01, 2005.
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