If you’re 50 or older, you could be in greater danger of suffering an unexpected fracture...but there are steps you can take to build bone density instead of steadily losing it.
In 2004, the U.S. Surgeon General rocked the medical community. America’s top doctor at the time, Richard H. Carmona, M.D., released the 2004 Bone Health Report, which warned that if we don’t change our lifestyle habits by 2020, half of American citizens older than 50 years of age would be at risk of fractures from osteoporosis. Notice that Dr. Carmona did not say that those over 50 would be at risk of developing osteoporosis, but of experiencing fractures from active osteoporosis. The report’s thesis statement—that widespread and serious bone health issues will likely happen at the relatively young age of 50—has worrisome implications… especially if 50 is the new 40.
How did this happen? Like most global health issues, several factors are combining to rob your body of healthy bones. While we tend to think of declining bone health as a consequence of old age, the stage is being set much earlier in life—even during the peak bone-building years of childhood and adolescence. The Surgeon General noted that “85% of adolescent girls and 65% of boys do not get enough bone-building nutrients, such as calcium and vitamin D to support normal bone growth.”
Clearly the issue starts with the young. Optimum bone health—for young and old—is hindered by our diets and sedentary lifestyle. Where diet is concerned, consider this quandary: Our modern diet has become more reliant on meats and grains, while foods richer in calcium and other important minerals—such as dark, green leafy vegetables—have been sent to the sidelines.
Basically, we are eating less calcium-rich foods and more acid-forming foods. Meats and grains have an acidic effect on the body. In order to combat this, the body has to release minerals to balance pH levels. One of the minerals the body releases? Calcium—which is leeched from the bones and teeth.
It’s not helping matters that our lives have become more sedentary. Our TV addiction and the increased use of computers and hand-held devices negatively impacts physical activity, which is an extremely important factor in bone health. Being sedentary often equates to being indoors, away from the rays of the sun. Our bodies are designed to transform sunlight into vitamin D, another key element to bone health.††
We tend to think of bone health as it relates to the elderly, but bone health—and more appropriately bone mineral loss—should be a concern at all ages of life.
We tend to think of bone health as it relates to the elderly, but bone health—and more appropriately bone mineral loss—should be a concern at all ages of life.So, if you are over 30, the age that is associated with end of the “bone growth” stage of life and the onset of normal age related bone mineral loss, then the Surgeon General’s report should be particularly alarming to you. Thankfully, Dr. Carmona and his team of medical experts laid out a three-part plan to address the alarming trends described in this report.
Dr. Carmona noted that increased health literacy was vital to overcoming the issue. The idea behind health literacy is rooted in the fact that the disturbing increase in fractures due to low bone mineral density—especially among younger persons—had gone largely unnoticed by the general public. The thinking is that by becoming more informed, the public will gain awareness—and take steps to combat—the issue of declining bone health.
Unfortunately, the 2004 Bone Health Report was a one-day story when it was released—and promptly overshadowed by the 2004 U.S. presidential election and scintillating major-league baseball playoffs. (The Boston Red Sox were making headlines for coming back to defeat the arch-rival New York Yankees in the playoffs and winning the World Series for the first time since 1918.)
The second part of the plan was promoting increased exercise for bone health. Regardless of age, exercise and physical activity are an important part of building and maintaining strong, healthy bones. A good all-around program that incorporates weight-bearing strength-training exercises is most desirable. Weight-bearing and resistance exercises are useful for increasing or maintaining bone mass, while balance-training may help with coordination and maintaining muscle mass, which can help prevent falls and resulting bone fractures.
No health plan would be complete without dietary recommendations. The Bone Health Report specifically called for dietary changes to enhance health of our bones.
Not surprisingly, the list of foods considered important for bone health reads like a list of the healthiest foods on the planet—and seem to be the very foods that are missing from many people’s diet: green leafy vegetables, nuts and seeds, dairy products and fish.
Of course, many people looking to boost their bone health choose to supplement their diets. It is in this area that one of the most common myths associated with bone health is found.