Already it is May and where I livethat means warmer weather (at last) and Spring flowers are in bloom. It is also much nicer for walking each day.

Today's notes:

1. If you walk, jog or do other weight bearing aerobic exercise each day to improve your bone health, you are getting a second benefit. Recent studies show that 45 minutes of aerobic exercise will cut your risk of developing Alzheimer disease by 50%. Yes, 50%.

2. There is a new, free service on the Osteopenia3 web site.

I know that some readers take prescription drugs and either do not have insurance or have large copays. There is a company that will tell you if there is a less expensive form of your prescription drug eg. a generic or an earlier form. And they will also tell you which pharmacy in your postal sip code is selling each drug for the lowest price. (the zip code part only applies to the USA. But the drug search covers most brand name drugs throughout the world.)

You can look up any prescription drug - not just those for Osteopenia or Osteoporosis. If you want to try the service, use the SEARCH box and type in 'Cheaper drugs' - the right page should turn up. This is a free service - I hope it is of some use to at least some readers.

3. The March issue of the Journal of Nutritional Health Aging published a manuscript about studies done at St Thomas' Hospital, London that reaffirmed the important of silica for bone health - especially for those with Osteopenia.

Their study states, in part:" Accumulating evidence over the last 30 years strongly suggest that dietary silicon is beneficial to bone and connective tissue health and we recently reported strong positive associations between dietary Silicon intake and bone mineral density in US and UK cohorts."

Silica is a trace mineral but it is important in bone building so it is worth checking to see if you daily multivitamin or your calcium supplement includes silicon. If not, you might consider finding a supplement that does include it.

The following foods are usually good sources of silica (if silica is in the soil where these foods are grown) Alfalfa, Barley. Beetroot, Leafy green vegetables, Millet, Oats, Onions, Rice, Whole grains, Wheat. One of the reasons why some people try to find onions (excellent source) and leafy green vegetables from organic farms is because the soil on organic farms often retains trace minerals.

4. I cam e across a seldom mentioned study done at Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa in 2007, that said elevated homocystine may be realted to lower density of trabecular bone (that is the inner part of our bone that is so important for preventing fractures). The researchers did NOT come to a strong conclusion but they found enough evidence to suggest this as an area for additional research.

Most of us know that elevated homocystine is seen as a negative cardiovascular and cognitive factor and now it may be indicated as important for bones. Most physicians check homocystine - thinking it as important or more important than cholesterol. Do you know your levels? Adequate folic acid and B12, B6 usually bring elevated homocystine in line.

5. Announcing: there will be NO newsletter next month. Yes, I feel the need for a bit of vacation from resaerch. Next newsletter will be out in July.

I have been going back through the web site, trying to update information - add newer studies when available. If you subscribed to the RSS feed, you will get notice of these revised pages as I do them. If you are looking for specific information or a specific study, do use the SEARCH function. I am finding it much more effective than even the Index page. Remember the returns in the center of the page are from the Osteopenia3.com site...and each one will have Osteopenia3.com in the url.

Google insists on adding other pages - a new form of google ads. If you see any page that is inappropriate, eg. one advocating the use of caffeine, please copy down the url and send it to me so I can ask google NOT to show it on this web site.

Much good health to you. I hope that you will eat lots of fresh fruits, salads and vegetables....and that you might even grow your own organic greens in small flats or boxes this summer. In fact you might want to reread some of the nutrition items on the site. As always fresh and organic is cheaper and more tasty than pills.

Thanks for reading this far,

Kate