It's never too early to improve the health of your bones. According to the National Osteoporosis Foundation, 85% of bone mass has been achieved by girls at age 18 and boys by the time they reach 20. The teen years are the
final growth period for your bones; teens should have 1300 mg of calcium
each day. Without good bone formation in the teen years, osteoporosis
could be more prevalent in later life. You don't feel your bones weaken.
Breaking a bone is often the first sign of osteoporosis.
How do you prevent osteoporosis?
Three lifestyle factors affecting your bone health are:
Your diet, the type of food you eat.
Getting enough calcium and Vitamin D.
Daily exercise, how much and what type.
How much calcium do you need everyday?
Depending on your age and gender you need from 700 to 1,300 mg of calcium daily. The nutrition facts label is based on 1000 mg of calcium daily.
Good sources of calcium include non-fat dairy products such as yogurt, milk and cheese. An 8 oz serving of plain non-fat yogurt can provide as much as 400mg of calcium.
How much vitamin D do you need everyday?
Your body needs vitamin D to absorb vitamin D. Institute of Medicine recommends 600 IU of vitamin D for most healthy adults. There are three ways to get vitamin D: Sunlight, Food, Supplements and medications.
Physical Activity
Bone is living tissue just like muscle. The more you use your muscles the stronger and bigger they get. It is the same for bones, bones need exercise, too.
What type of exercise works best for your bone health? Impact exercises - either using your own body weight or more resistance.
Weight -bearing exercises include both high and low-impact exercises.
Examples are:
High Impact: Low Impact:
Dancing Elliptical training machines
Hiking Low-impact aerobics
Jogging/Running Walking on a treadmill
Swimming is a non-weight bearing exercise, but does not promote bone
health, even though it is an excellent exercise for muscles and cardio-
vascular health.