Diet Exercise and Osteoporosis

Osteoporosis Osteoporosis is a condition that one has when bones lose their density. They become porous like a fossilized sea sponge. Anyone who has ever been to the beach and found one of these knows how brittle and fragile they are. They slightest bump and they can break or shatter into a hundred pieces. When you have osteoporosis, this is what your bones are like. As Ferrara (2016) points out, bones are living tissues.

Like the exterior of bodies, which replaces dead tissue with new tissue, bones replace old bone with new bone. In order to keep that process going, we have to keep our bodies in excellent shape. What causes osteoporosis? It can have a number of causes. Sometimes it occurs in older women after menopause, when the body goes through a major change (Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine, 2009). Sometimes people develop it at an earlier age because they go on strict diets during their formative years.

Young girls who are engaged in strict gymnastics regimens and who do not get the necessary nutrients they need to develop strong bones can be negatively impacted. Young individuals who become severely anorexic can also be negatively impacted: if they are starving their bodies, they are going to hurt their bones because their bones need nutrients that come from eating wholesome meals (Newbridge, 2018). Consuming foods with calcium, found in dairy products, is a good place to start for one interested in preventing the onset of osteoporosis.

Osteoporosis can develop naturally, too. As we age, more old bone is reabsorbed than new bone is made. In other words, our bone mass and density decrease. This is why older people are typically frailer than younger people. When bodies are younger, new bone is typically produced at a faster rate than old bone is absorbed, which is why younger people tend to have stronger, healthier, denser bones. Age has a lot to do with it.

During the adolescent stage of development, the body is changing in immense ways and the bone structure is playing a huge part in maintaining a sturdy frame for those changes. So long as the adolescent eats right and does not abuse the body in any way, the bones will be strong and have a good solid density into their 30s.

Once the individual gets to that age, the body slows down and begins producing less bone while continuing to reabsorb old bone, which can lead to an overall loss of bone density. It is something that can happen over a long period of time in spite of efforts we might take to prevent it (Ferrara, 2016). Nonetheless, there are some steps that you can take to help reduce the risk of osteoporosis from setting in.

The first way to treat osteoporosis or to try to prevent it outright is to make certain changes to your lifestyle. Changes that help to reduce or slow the loss of bone density include: a) exercising, b) altering our diet, c) abstaining from smoking, alcohol and drugs. Let’s look at a few of these. Exercising helps to reduce the risk of osteoporosis because a strong body supports bone maintenance (Ferrara, 2016).

An individual who is overweight should focus on starting up an exercise regimen to help bring the weight down. Too much weight on one’s bone structure makes the bones weaker overall by putting them in a constant state of tension. Exercise can also help one to develop better coordination and agility, which can prevent falls (a common problem for people with osteoporosis).

Additionally, the more one exercises and stays committed to an exercise routine, the more likely one is to stay committed to an overall healthy lifestyle, free of smoking, drinking and drugs, and full of healthy dieting. While on the subject of dieting, it is important to note that extreme dieting coupled with extreme exercise is a dangerous combination—particularly for young girls. This combination can disrupt the menstrual cycle, which is needed because it produces estrogen, which facilitates bone development.

Young girls who are too strict in their dieting are at risk of developing osteoporosis at an early age (Newbridge, 2018). So remember—moderation in everything! Getting back to what one should include in one’s diet: leafy greens are great and so are foods high in vitamin D and calcium—i.e., milk, cheese, yogurt, etc. As Ferrara (2016) notes, “calcium is the main mineral in bones, and very few people get enough of it in their diet” (p. 1492).

How much calcium should you get? “Most experts recommend 1,000 milligrams (mg) of calcium per day for women 50 and younger and 1,200 mg for those 51 and older. For men, 1,000 mg.