Dr. Joshua John-Ram Schacter explains how estrogen protects joints and bones in both women and men. Estrogen suppresses cells that break down bone and stimulates bone-forming cells, making it more effective for osteoporosis than bisphosphonates. It also reduces joint inflammation and improves cartilage health and lubrication.
Well, interestingly enough, estrogen is critical in maintaining joints, not just for women but also for men.
Estrogen is there's actual receptors for the estrogen molecule in the lining of the joint. There are receptors for the estrogen molecule in the cells that help make and break down bone. So the cells that break down bone, estrogen naturally suppresses those. Estrogen also naturally helps to build bone by stimulating the cells called osteoblasts that will help us. Not only that, but estrogen is the best drug out there for osteoporosis treatment because unlike a lot of the medications that are out there on the market, like bisphosphonate, medications that most people are prescribed by their primary care doctor for osteoporosis, estrogen actually helps maintain the structure of bone in a healthy way. And not only that, but it blunts the inflammation that we could get in the joint from osteoarthritis. It makes cartilage healthier and it helps our joints become better lubricated and it helps them be more supple, it helps them have better range of motion.
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