The effects of calcium-collagen chelate on bone loss in osteopenic postmenopausal women

Menopause leads to an increased risk for osteoporosis in women. Although drug therapies exist, increasing numbers of people prefer alternative therapies such as dietary supplements, e.g. calcium, vitamin D, and collagen hydrolysates for the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis. We have previously shown that a three-month intervention using a calcium-collagen chelate dietary supplement (CC) was efficacious in improving bone mineral density (BMD) and blood biomarkers of bone turnover in osteopenic postmenopausal women. The present study reports the long-term efficacy of CC in reducing bone loss in postmenopausal women with osteopenia. Thirty-nine women were randomly assigned to one of two groups: 5 g of CC containing 500 mg of elemental calcium and 200 IU vitamin D (1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3) or control (500 mg of calcium and 200 IU vitamin D) daily for twelve months. Total body, lumbar, and hip BMD were evaluated at baseline, six and twelve months using dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry. Blood was collected at baseline, six and twelve months to assess levels of blood biomarkers of bone turnover. Intent-to-treat (ITT) analysis was performed using repeated measures analysis of variance pairwise comparisons as well as multivariate analysis to assess time and group interactions. The loss of whole body BMD in women taking CC was substantially lower than that of the control group at twelve months in those who completed the study and the ITT analysis, respectively (CC: -1.33% and -0.33% vs. control: -3.75% and -2.17%; P = .026, P = .035). The CC group had significantly reduced levels of sclerostin and tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP5b) (P < .05), and higher bone-specific alkaline phosphatase (BAP)/TRAP5b ratio (P < .05) than control at six months. These results support the use of CC in reducing bone loss in osteopenic postmenopausal women.