Soy proteins and isoflavones reduce interleukin-6 but not serum lipids in older women: a randomized controlled trial.

Soy foods contain several components, notably, isoflavones and amino acids, that may improve cardiovascular health. We evaluated the long-term effect of soy protein and/or soy isoflavones supplementation on serum lipids and inflammatory markers using a 1-year randomized, double-blind, placebo-control, clinical trial in 131 healthy ambulatory women older than 60 years. We hypothesized that soy protein, in combination with isoflavones, would have the largest positive effect on coronary heart disease risk factors (serum lipids and inflammatory markers) compared with either intervention alone and that, within groups receiving isoflavones, equol producers would have more positive effects on coronary heart disease risk factors than nonequol producers.

Soy proteins and isoflavones affect bone mineral density in older women: a randomized controlled trial.

Background: Soy foods contain several components (isoflavones and amino acids) that potentially affect bone. Few long-term, large clinical trials of soy as a means of improving bone mineral density (BMD) in late postmenopausal women have been conducted.

Objective: Our goal was to evaluate the long-term effect of dietary soy protein and/or soy isoflavone consumption on skeletal health in late postmenopausal women.

The effect of 3-year treatment with 0.25 mg/day of micronized 17beta-estradiol on cognitive function in older postmenopausal women.

Objectives: To evaluate the effect of ultra-low-dose (0.25 mg/d) micronized 17beta-estradiol on cognitive function in older postmenopausal women.

Design: Randomized, placebo-controlled trial conducted for 3 years.

Impact of smoking cessation on bone mineral density in postmenopausal women.

Background: Although clinical guidelines recommend smoking cessation to improve bone health, the impact of short-term smoking cessation (i.e., 1 year) on bone mineral density (BMD) is not known.

Effects of ultra-low-dose estrogen therapy on muscle and physical function in older women.

Objectives: To determine the effects of ultra-low-dose hormone therapy on muscle mass and physical function in community-dwelling women.

Design: Double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

Setting: Clinical research center in Connecticut.

Low-dose estradiol alters brain activity.

Although several studies have examined the effects of estrogen replacement therapy (ERT) on neural activity associated with tasks of learning and memory, no study has examined such effects on a sustained attention task. This study examined the effect of low-dose estrogen replacement therapy on hemodynamic activity elicited by a visual three-stimulus oddball task recorded using event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Participants included 16 women between the ages of 73 and 84 who were part of a randomized controlled double-blind study to evaluate the effect of an ultralow dose micronized estradiol on bone.

Osteoporosis medications used by older African-American women: effects of socioeconomic status and psychosocial factors.

This study examined the effects of socioeconomic status, knowledge and Health Belief Model variables on ever use of hormone therapy and other osteoporosis medications among older African-American women. One-hundred and two African-American women, 60 years old or older, randomly selected from Registers of Voters and a list of participants in educational activities of a university hospital, were interviewed in their homes. Data collected concerned knowledge of osteoporosis, Health Belief Model variables, and cues to action such as history of hysterectomy, personal and family history of cancer, bone mineral density testing, and discussion with a physician about osteoporosis.

Bone health and aging: implications for menopause.

Osteoporosis is one major health condition that contributes to excess morbidity and mortality in women after menopause. In the past, hormone therapy (HT) was prescribed commonly for symptoms of menopause, and there was also evidence that HT protected against osteoporosis. Recently, however, the overall health risks have been reported to exceed benefits, with the beneficial effects seen only in the decreased incidence of hip fractures and colon cancer.

Strategies for enrolling diverse older women in an osteoporosis trial.

Objectives: This study reviewed a consumer-oriented process for recruiting research volunteers age 65 or older for an osteoporosis clinical trial.

Methods: Odds ratios were used to estimate the relative importance of methods to enroll research volunteers from three racial or ethnic groups.

Results: Nine hundred and four women were screened; 168 African American, White, and Hispanic women enrolled.

The effect of different doses of micronized 17beta-estradiol on C-reactive protein, interleukin-6, and lipids in older women.

Background: The authors evaluated the effect of 3 doses (0.25 mg/day, 0.5 mg/day, and 1 mg/day) of micronized 17beta-estradiol (E2) on C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and lipids, compared with placebo, in healthy older women participating in an osteoporosis study.

Multicultural medication adherence: a comparative study.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of several interventions on improving medication adherence among White, Black, and Hispanic older women. A total of 109 women older than age 65 who were participating in a clinical osteoporosis trial were recruited for this 12-month study examining medication adherence. After baseline medication adherence was assessed, participants underwent standardized teaching.

Barriers to eligibility and enrollment among older women in a clinical trial on osteoporosis: effects of ethnicity and SES.

Objectives: The study examined whether ethnicity or socioeconomic status influenced a group's ability to meet eligibility criteria and willingness to enroll.

Method: The eligibility and enrollment status of 904 women aged 65 years and older who responded to recruitment efforts of an estrogen and osteoporosis clinical trial were analyzed.

Results: Among women screened, 59% were White, 27% African Americans, and 14% Hispanics; average age was 75 years; 57.

The effect of raloxifene on markers of bone turnover in older women living in long-term care facilities.

Objectives: To examine the effect of raloxifene on bone turnover in elderly women.

Design: Clinical intervention.

Setting: Long-term care facilities.

Comparison of the effects of calcium loading with calcium citrate or calcium carbonate on bone turnover in postmenopausal women.

Calcium supplementation is known to increase bone mineral density and decrease fractures, but the relative efficacy of different forms of calcium supplementation is not established. We compared the effects of calcium carbonate and calcium citrate on markers of bone resorption in older postmenopausal women in an open-labeled crossover study. Forty women were randomized to receive 1000 mg/day of either calcium citrate or calcium carbonate for 12 weeks, followed by a 2-week washout without calcium supplements and 12 weeks treatment with the alternate calcium supplement.

Osteoporosis in older men and women.

Hip fracture incidence accelerates approximately 10 years following the menopause in women and after age 70 in men. Approximately one million Americans suffer fragility fractures each year at a cost of over 14 billion dollars. The disability, mortality and cost of hip and vertebral fractures are substantial in the rapidly growing aging population so that prevention of osteoporosis is a major public health concern.

Ultralow-dose micronized 17beta-estradiol and bone density and bone metabolism in older women: a randomized controlled trial.

Context: Estrogen therapy is known to prevent osteoporosis, but studies have shown that conventional doses increase adverse events. Whether lower doses, one quarter of standard treatment, prevent bone loss is not known.

Objective: To examine the effect of 3 years of treatment with 0.

Prevention and treatment of osteoporosis.

Osteoporosis develops in older adults when the normal processes of bone formation and resorption become uncoupled or unbalanced, resulting in bone loss. Fractures are the result of decreased bone mass and strength and, in the case of wrist and hip fractures, usually involve a fall. Osteoporosis prevention and treatment programs should then focus on strategies that minimize bone resorption and maximize bone formation as well as on strategies that reduce falls.

Effects of smoking cessation or reduction on hormone profiles and bone turnover in postmenopausal women.

The purpose of this study was to prospectively evaluate the impact of smoking cessation on hormonal concentrations, sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) and markers of bone turnover in postmenopausal women. Sixty-six women who were either users or non-users of estrogen replacement therapy (ERT) were randomly assigned, using a weighted randomization scheme, to smoking cessation (SC) or to smoking cessation after 6 weeks of monitoring (wait-list control group, WLC). We measured hormones [estrone, estradiol, testosterone, parathyroid hormone, dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) and androstenedione] and SHBG, markers of bone turnover [procollagen peptide (PINP), bone alkaline phosphatase (BAP), and osteocalcin (OC), N- and C-terminal collagen cross-links (NTx and CTx)], and cotinine, at baseline and again at 6 weeks in women who reported smoking cessation and in women randomized to the WLC group.

Prevalence of sarcopenia and predictors of skeletal muscle mass in healthy, older men and women.

Background: Sarcopenia refers to the loss of skeletal muscle mass with age. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of sarcopenia in a population of older, community-dwelling research volunteers.

Methods: Appendicular skeletal muscle mass was measured by dual x-ray absorptiometry in 195 women aged 64 to 93 years and 142 men aged 64 to 92 years.

Effects of transdermal testosterone on lipids and vascular reactivity in older men with low bioavailable testosterone levels.

Background: Sex hormones are known to affect cholesterol levels and vascular tone in women. The effects of testosterone on cholesterol and vascular tone in men are less well understood. Low testosterone levels have been associated with higher cholesterol levels in epidemiologic studies, but testosterone replacement has resulted in variable changes in cholesterol levels.