Women on placebo lost bone mineral density at both sites. Dietary calcium intake helps, if a woman is not taking estrogen. In the placebo group, women with the highest calcium intake had significantly less bone loss in their spines, about 1.8 percent, compared to a loss of 3.6 percent among women taking on ly a moderate amount of calcium. On average, the thinnest women taking placebo lost significantly more spinal bone, 4.7 percent, than heavier women, 1.4 percent. The net effect was a reduction in heart disease risk factors.
Heart disease is the leading killer of postmenopausal women.
This effe ct can lead to increased thickness in the lining of the uterus and changes in the glandular structures of the endometrium which, if untreated, has been associated with subsequent development of endometrial cancer. That condition did not occur any more fre quently among women taking combination estrogen-progestin therapy than among those taking placebo. Inc. All rights reserved.