Fructans from the blue variety of Agave tequilana help us absorb 50 per cent more calcium and magnesium, and grow new bone within eight weeks.
But for it to work effectively, we also need a healthy gut with ‘friendly’ bacteria that can ferment the fructans and turn them into fatty acids.
Right now, work on the fructans is still in its early stages and tests have so far been restricted to laboratory mice, says Dr Mercedes Lopez at the Centre for Research and Advanced Studies in Mexico.
But those tests are returning impressive results. Not only did the mice absorb 50 per cent more magnesium and calcium, the diameter of their femur bones was greater than the mice that were not given the fructans.
If clinical trials produce similar results, this could be an alternative way to prevent and treat osteoporosis, says Dr Lopez.
(Source: Centre for Research and Advanced Studies, Mexico. April 9th, 2016)
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