Osteoporosis and osteopenia are major health problems affecting over 44 million Americans, primarily older women. Nutrition, plays a critical role in bone health but its role in the pathogenesis and prevention of bone loss is incompletely understood. We have found that dietary protein is a major regulator of calcium homeostasis, yet its impact on skeletal health remains controversial. Increasing dietary protein is known to increase urinary calcium excretion and a widely held view is that this extra calcium originates, in part, from bone. However, recent epidemiologic studies have found that higher protein intakes are associated with higher (not lower) bone mineral density and lower (not higher) rates of bone loss. Using calcium kinetic methodology, we have found that when dietary protein is increased in healthy women, intestinal calcium absorption increases significantly and accounts for almost all of the increase in urinary calcium. Further, when women consumed a high protein diet, the percentage of urinary calcium originating from bone is reduced and bone turnover is also slightly reduced. We hypothesize that a protein supplement added to the diets of healthy older women with habitually a low-normal protein diet, will improve bone health and hormonal indices of bone metabolism (in comparison to a placebo control). To test this hypothesis, we will conduct an 18-month, double-blind, placebo-controlled, dietary protein supplementation trial using the General Clinical Research Centers at Yale University and the University of Connecticut Health Center. Two hundred healthy women at least 60 yrs. of age will be recruited from central Connecticut. Subjects will be enrolled who naturally consume a moderately low (yet adequate) level of dietary protein (0.6-1 g/kg). (Approximately 30-40% of US women over the age of 60 y fall into this group). After baseline measurements, subjects will be randomized to receive either a placebo (maltodextrin) or a 40 g protein supplement for 18 months. The primary outcome measure in this trial is spinal bone density as assessed by DEXA. Secondary outcomes will include BMD at the spine and hip measured by QCT, serum measures of mineral homeostasis and bone turnover, and an assessment of physical performance. These studies will better inform dietary protein recommendations for optimal skeletal health and, if our hypothesis is correct, provide a new therapeutic approach to age-related bone loss.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
5R01AR053701-04
Application #
7673792
Study Section
Skeletal Biology Development and Disease Study Section (SBDD)
Program Officer
Chen, Faye H
Project Start
2006-09-28
Project End
2012-08-31
Budget Start
2009-09-01
Budget End
2012-08-31
Support Year
4
Fiscal Year
2009
Total Cost
$362,007
Indirect Cost
Name
Yale University
Department
Internal Medicine/Medicine
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
043207562
City
New Haven
State
CT
Country
United States
Zip Code
06520
Bihuniak, Jessica D; Insogna, Karl L (2015) The effects of dietary protein and amino acids on skeletal metabolism. Mol Cell Endocrinol 410:78-86
Gregorio, L; Brindisi, J; Kleppinger, A et al. (2014) Adequate dietary protein is associated with better physical performance among post-menopausal women 60-90 years. J Nutr Health Aging 18:155-60
Bihuniak, Jessica D; Simpson, Christine A; Sullivan, Rebecca R et al. (2013) Dietary protein-induced increases in urinary calcium are accompanied by similar increases in urinary nitrogen and urinary urea: a controlled clinical trial. J Acad Nutr Diet 113:447-51
Surdykowski, Anna K; Kenny, Anne M; Insogna, Karl L et al. (2010) Optimizing bone health in older adults: the importance of dietary protein. Aging health 6:345-357