The bones are one of the most important organs in the body. They are extensive and do much more than simply prop us up or help us move. They are living tissues and have their own blood supply. They produce important immune cells, red blood cells, and minerals for blood homeostasis (stop bleeding). They protect our important organs like the lungs, heart and brain.
We are born with about 270 bones that grow, change, fuse, form, and reform throughout our lifetime. As adults, we have about 206 bones and about one quarter of these bones are in both feet.
The density or thickness of the bone tells us how healthy they are. DEXA (dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry) scans are a definitive way to measure bone density. The scan gives your bones a score compared to the bones of the healthiest people in our population. If your score falls enough below normal, your doctor will say you have low bone density, osteopenia, or osteoporosis and you may need treatment. Bone with low density may cause pain as well as increase the risk of fracture or broken bone.
How to build and keep healthy bones
When we say “build bone,” it means to increase bone density by reducing bone breakdown and increasing building more new bone. This helps the bone to get stronger over time. Estrogen and other hormones help to keep the balance between bone breakdown and bone-building at an even pace. This is why young people and premenopausal women tend to have a lower risk of osteoporosis. Other hormones like thyroid, parathyroid and cortisol also play a role in regulating bone growth. Your diet and activity also affect your bone health and overall growth.
Calcium for
bone density
Your bones are only made from what you eat and drink. Because our bones are mostly made of calcium, it’s important to consume enough calcium each day in your diet. The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recommends at least 1000 milligrams per day for most adults, and 30 percent of adults are calcium deficient. The most healthful calcium sources are green leafy vegetables and legumes, or greens and beans for short. Broccoli, brussels sprouts, collards, kale, mustard greens, Swiss chard, and other greens are loaded with highly absorbable calcium and a host of other healthful nutrients. Other sources of calcium include yogurt, orange juice, mozzarella cheese, milk, sardines, soy, and salmon. You can also get a good calcium supplement that contains approximately 600 to 1200 milligrams of calcium per day. Always ask your doctor before starting calcium or any supplement.
Exercise, so calcium has somewhere to go
Exercise is important for many reasons, including keeping bones strong. Active people tend to keep calcium in their bones, while sedentary people lose calcium.
Get vitamin D from the sun, or supplements if you need them
Vitamin D controls your body’s use of calcium. Getting enough vitamin D is also critical for bone health because it allows our gastrointestinal systems to absorb the calcium we eat, and allows our parathyroid glands to signal to our bones to keep growing. About 15 minutes of sunlight on your skin each day normally produces all the vitamin D you need. Here, in The Bahamas, we have about 340 sunny days per year, so we can get the needed sun exposure very easily. If you get little or no sun exposure, you can get vitamin D from any multivitamin. The recommended dietary allowance is 600 IU (5 micrograms) per day. Vitamin D is often added to milk, but the amount added is not always well controlled.
How to prevent
bone loss
It’s not enough to get calcium into your bones, so it is really critical to keep it there. American recommendations for calcium intake are high because the meat, salt, tobacco, and physical inactivity of American life leads to overly rapid and unnatural loss of calcium through the kidneys. By controlling these basic factors, you can have an enormous influence on whether calcium stays in your bones or drains out of your body. Here’s how you can do that:
Reduce calcium losses by avoiding excess salt
Calcium in bones tends to dissolve into the bloodstream, then pass through the kidneys into the urine. Sodium (salt) in the foods you eat can greatly increase calcium loss through the kidneys. If you reduce your sodium intake to one to two grams per day, you will hold onto calcium better. To do that, avoid salty snack foods and canned goods with added sodium, and keep salt use low on the stove and at the table.
Get your protein from plants, not animal products
Animal protein – in fish, poultry, red meat, eggs, and dairy products tends to leach calcium from the bones and encourages its passage into the urine and out the body. Plant protein – in beans, grains, and vegetables does not appear to have this effect.
Don’t smoke
Smokers lose calcium, too. A study of identical twins showed that if one twin had been a long-term smoker and the other had not, the smoker had more than a 40 percent higher risk of a fracture.
Movement for
bone health
Walking and being physically active is important to building strong bones. Studies suggest that when inactive adults begin to lift weights, they can increase their bone mineral density by up to three percent. Weightlifting builds bones and reverses osteopenia and osteoporosis. The reason resistance training or weightlifting works to increase bone density is that bones grow in response to increase pressure and weight. The heavier you lift (within reason), the stronger your bones will become; this increased weight you lift sends signals to the bone to become denser, thicker and stronger. Consult your doctor before you begin weight lifting or any physical activity program.
Weak bones can lead to a number of health challenges including bone pain and increase risk for fractures. But the good news is that you can reverse your osteopenia or osteoporosis naturally by simply adopting a regular resistance training/weight lifting program, combined with a healthy diet.
• For more information on foot conditions, visit www.apma.org, healthcentral.com, or email us at foothealth242@gmail.com. To see a podiatrist, visit Bahamas Foot Centre, Rosetta Street, or telephone 325-2996 for an appointment at Bahamas Surgical Associates Centre, Hilltop Medical, or call 394-5820 for an appointment. You can also visit Lucayan Medical Centre in Freeport, Grand Bahama, or telephone 373-7400 for an appointment.
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source https://thenassauguardian.com/building-strong-bones/
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