Effect of potassium citrate supplementation or increased fruit and vegetable intake on bone metabolism in healthy postmenopausal women: a randomized controlled trial.

Study answer

What this study found

Overall, neither potassium citrate supplementation nor increased fruit and vegetable intake produced sustained improvements in bone turnover or bone mineral density over 2 years. Time-by-arm interactions were not significant for P1NP, CTX, or fDPD/Cr across follow-up, and the authors concluded that alkali provision from fruits and vegetables does not explain long-term bone benefits. A short-term effect was seen only for fDPD/Cr at 4 to 6 weeks, where the high-dose and low-dose potassium citrate groups differed after Bonferroni post hoc testing (P=0.047), but this was not sustained. Baseline…

Study & population

Randomized controlled trial in healthy postmenopausal women, approximately 55 to 65 years old, recruited from the community in Aberdeen, Scotland.

Intervention

Participants were randomized to oral potassium citrate capsules at either a high dose of 2.16 g daily (55.5 mEq alkali) or a low dose of 0.72 g daily (18.5 mEq alkali) for 2 years, or to a dietary intervention targeting an additional 300 g per day of fruit and vegetables.

Key limitation

Each active arm was modest in size (high-dose n=70, low-dose n=70, diet n=66), limiting power for small effects.

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Original abstract