On Thu, 29 Apr 2010 11:14:57 -0700, Dan Abel wrote:

> In article >,
> blake murphy > wrote:
>
>> Study finds beer is good for your bones: Light-colored ales most effective
>> against osteoporosis
>>
>> BY Rosemary Black
>> DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
>>
>> Tuesday, February 9th 2010, 12:58 PM
>
>> <http://www.nydailynews.com/lifestyle...09_study_finds
>> _beer_is_good_for_your_bones_lightcolored_ales_mos t_effective_against.html>
>
> Color me skeptical. Silicon is not exactly scarce. Most dirt and rocks
> are made out of silicon dioxide. Silicon is a nutrient mostly for
> plants and lower animals, like diatoms:
>
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silicon
>
> A Google search on "silicon nutrient" turns up references mostly to
> plants (as in growing plants, not eating them), with references to
> humans from the "health nut" people.

that thought occurred to me as well. however, a quick google on [silicon
bone health] (done before i posted the item) turned this up:

J Nutr Health Aging. 2007 Mar-Apr;11(2):99-110.
Silicon and bone health.

Jugdaohsingh R.

Rayne Institute, Gastrointestinal Laboratory, St Thomas' Hospital, London.

Abstract

Low bone mass (osteoporosis) is a silent epidemic of the 21st century,
which presently in the UK results in over 200,000 fractures annually at a
cost of over one billion pounds. Figures are set to increase worldwide.
Understanding the factors which affect bone metabolism is thus of primary
importance in order to establish preventative measures or treatments for
this condition. Nutrition is an important determinant of bone health, but
the effects of the individual nutrients and minerals, other than calcium,
is little understood. Accumulating evidence over the last 30 years strongly
suggest that dietary silicon is beneficial to bone and connective tissue
health and we recently reported strong positive associations between
dietary Si intake and bone mineral density in US and UK cohorts. The exact
biological role(s) of silicon in bone health is still not clear, although a
number of possible mechanisms have been suggested, including the synthesis
of collagen and/or its stabilization, and matrix mineralization. This
review gives an overview of this naturally occurring dietary element, its
metabolism and the evidence of its potential role in bone health.

<http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17435952>

as far as i can tell, The Journal of Nutrition Health and Aging is not some
collection of kooks.

there were 180,000 other hits as well.

your pal,
blake