Osteoporosis Part 3

As we end the discussion on preventing osteoporosis and maintaining strong bones, let’s review what we know so far.  In the last two weeks we have discussed that you need to keep your pH alkaline rather than acidic and we said you need the right balance of other nutrients including magnesium, and vitamins D and C to truly benefit from the calcium that you take in.  To satisfy both of these criteria, your best choice of dietary calcium will be from the dark green vegetables.

I’ve saved the most important factor for last.  Several years ago Harvard did a study on calcium and strong bones.  In this study they took four groups of people.  The first group took prescription grade calcium and did nothing else.  The second group took the same prescription and exercised five times each week.  The third group took placebo (fake) calcium and did nothing else.  And the final group took the placebo and exercised five times each week.  The researchers believed that the two prescription groups would get the best results.  However, after several months, the only two groups that showed an increase in bone density were the two groups who exercised.  Of these two groups, the ones taking the calcium did slightly better than the placebo, but the difference was not considered significant.  Their conclusion was that moderate exercise for at least 20 minutes three times per week was critical for proper bone strength.

In the end, the key to healthy bones in the body is the same key as healthy anything else – eat a natural diet high in fruits and vegetables and exercise regularly! 

Osteoporosis Part 2

Last week I closed by questioning the value of dairy in preventing osteoporosis.  While it is true that all milk products are a rich source of calcium, there is still great debate as to whether dairy consumption truly maintains strong bones.  One of the problems with dairy is that it is relatively high in protein and last week we shared the research that high protein diets tend to cause calcium to be dumped in the urine.

To increase bone strength you need other ingredients in addition to calcium.  For instance you need vitamin D3 which helps move calcium out of the gut and into the blood.  You also need magnesium to get calcium out of the blood and into the bone.  Dairy is relatively low in magnesium, so unless you’re getting this mineral from other sources, your milk calcium will be relatively ineffective.  I realize this information may be shocking to some because we’ve been conditioned to drink milk for strong bones.  However, while milk is rich in calcium, there has never been a study proving that dairy reduces the risk of osteoporosis.  When you think about it, we are the only mammals on the planet who drink milk after we are weaned.  To my knowledge there is not an epidemic of osteoporosis in horses or elephants related to their lack of dairy!

But you still need calcium, so what should you do?  The foods that have the best balance of calcium and the other necessary nutrients are once again, the “greens”.  We should all be getting our calcium from sources such as broccoli, cabbage, kale, romaine lettuce, and spinach.  Believe it or not, turnip and collard greens seem to be one of the healthiest sources.  Next week I will discuss the most important factor for strong bones.

Osteoporosis

Nearly 25 million Americans suffer with osteoporosis and the related complications of thin, porous bones prone to fracture.  Today, I’d like to start a series on the subject of calcium and strong bones.

Everyone believes that strong bones are merely the result of how much calcium you can pour down.  In reality, there are numerous factors such as the type of calcium, other vitamins and minerals, physical activity and your own internal chemistry that will undermine your efforts regardless of your calcium intake.  Many researchers believe that your chemistry, specifically your pH, may be one of the most important factors.  pH in your body is the same as in your swimming pool – it’s the balance of acid and base.  By design, we are meant to be slightly basic or “alkaline” and many believe that all disease exists only in an acidic environment.

In terms of strong bones, as we become more acidic (pH less than 7.3) the activity of the cells that break down bone (osteoclasts) is increased and the activity of the cells that build bone (osteoblasts) is decreased.  This means in an acidic environment, you will continuously be losing bone strength.  However, the opposite phenomenon seems to happen in an alkaline environment and you gain bone strength.  The question then should be how do we stay alkaline, and what would make our bodies acidic?

The key to staying alkaline is the same as the key to reducing inflammation in the body.  You must eat a diet high in alkaline foods such as fruits and vegetables.  The primary things that increase acidity in our bodies are diets high in protein and excessive amounts of emotional stress.  Do you know what food is relatively high in dietary protein . . . dairy.  Ooops!  More on this next week.