We reveal our top tips for supporting bone health.

Protecting your bone health may be easier than you think and it’s incredibly important, especially as we get older. Bones play a vital role within the body; providing structure, anchoring muscles, storing calcium and protecting our organs.  While it is important to build strong and healthy bones during childhood, it’s crucial to take steps to protect bones during adulthood too.

Why is bone health important?
Your bones are continuously changing, with new bone being made whilst old bone is broken down. “A fact, not known by many, is that in the first year of a child’s life the skeleton recycles 100%. As we age and enter adulthood, this stabilises at approximately 10% of our entire skeleton being rebuilt every year,” explains pharmacist Dr. Omar Milhem.

When you’re young your body is able to make new bone faster than it breaks down old, and your bone mass increases. Most people reach peak bone mass at the age of 30 and after that, bone remodelling continues but we lose more bone mass than we gain – so it gradually begins to decline.

How likely you are to develop osteoporosis (a condition that causes bones to become weak and brittle) is dependent on how much bone mass you have by the time you reach 30 and how rapidly you lose it after that. The higher your peak bone mass, the longer it will take for it to decline – so you are less likely to develop osteoporosis or if you do, the older you will be.

Nutrients needed to promote healthy bones
The best way to build strong bones by getting adequate amounts of calcium along with magnesium, trace minerals, vitamins D3 and vitamin K2 from your diet and regularly exposure to sunlight.

Michela Vagnini, nutritionist at Natures Plus, explains: “Calcium is arguably the most important nutrient in your body. As the most abundant mineral, it has several important functions and more than 99% of your calcium is stored in your bones and teeth where it supports their structure and is ready to be called into action for many other essential functions.

“Deficiency of magnesium affects bone growth, osteoblastic and osteoclastic activity, osteopenia and bone fragility, and can alter calcium metabolism.

“Dairy products, canned sardines and salmon with bones in them, sesame seeds, brassicas and green leafy vegetables (kale, spinach, rocket) are all good sources of calcium. Top sources of magnesium include sesame seeds, almonds, dark chocolate and black beans.

“Vitamin D is responsible for calcium absorption and regulation in our body and for the maintenance of normal bone health. In studies, calcium and vitamin D help to reduce the loss of bone mineral in post-menopausal women (severe loss of mineral density is called osteoporosis).

“There is a consistent line of evidence in human epidemiologic and intervention studies that clearly demonstrates that vitamin K can improve bone health. Vitamin K also has a role with vitamin D in bone density acting as modulator of osteocalcin, a protein believed to be involved in bone mineralization, and positively affects calcium balance.

“In terms of trace minerals, the main mineral found in our bones is calcium, but there are around 70 different minerals present in our bones. Calcium, phosphorus and magnesium are the main one but there are other minerals found in smaller amounts that are also essential for bones health.”

“The most common and widely known supplements for bone health are calcium and vitamin D,” comments Dr. Milhelm, “It is also known that the main source of calcium is calcium carbonate – a rock based product that unfortunately has low bioavailability and requires the addition of vitamin D to improve absorption levels of both calcium and phosphates.

“From the onset of menopause, the rate of the body’s reabsorption of calcium from the bones can increase significantly meaning that bone mineral density can decrease. Supplementation of these two key minerals (calcium and phosphate) can therefore have a significant beneficial effect on bone health.”

Try:
Natures Plus – Source of Life Garden Bone Support
LithoLexal – Osteoporotic Bone Health
LithoLexal – Elemental Bone Care

Other routes to supporting bone health
There are a number of other ways to further support bone health. Vagnini recommends removing processed, sugary foods from the diet: “They have a negative impact on your bones health whereas eating fresh vegetables, fruits, nuts and legumes regularly can promote good bones. Issues, such as osteoporosis, are not only due to insufficient daily calcium intake, but rather because we do not get sufficient amounts of bone building nutrients in our diet.”

As well as removing processed, sugary foods, it’s important to focus on a healthy diet: “Starting a healthy diet from as early an age as possible is essential, as the long term health of our bones can be influenced in later life by the actions and lifestyle we lead in our younger years. Ensuring a good source of essential vitamins and minerals as part of our diet – such as a highly bioavailable form of calcium, vitamin D and magnesium – will provide the fundamentals needed to help maintain a healthy bone rebuilding cycle throughout all stages of life,” explains Dr. Milhelm.

It’s also a good idea to minimise your stress levels, Vagnini explains: “When you’re stressed your body releases a steroid hormone called cortisol. If stress is prolonged, cortisol levels remain high, resulting in inflammation in the body. And when your cortisol levels are high, this affects your bone health. For instance, when your body is inflamed due to prolonged high cortisol levels, there is a reduction in your body’s ability to absorb calcium.”

Regular weight bearing exercise is also important; it helps to strengthen not only your muscles but your bones too. “Bone density has a lot to do with what you do – or do not do,” comments Vagnini. “Regular strength training helps to deposit more minerals in the bones, especially those in the legs, hips and spine. The opposite is also true – lack of regular exercise will accelerate bone loss. Weight-bearing exercise, which is any activity in which your body works against gravity, is the best thing you can do. When you strengthen your muscles, your bones become stronger from the mechanical stress of exercise. Examples of weight-bearing exercises include: running, climbing stairs, gardening, yoga, tai chi, hiking, tennis and weight lifting.”