Avoid Osteoporosis Naturally

Learning how to avoid osteoporosis is a huge concern for a large part of the population, and for good reason… our bones protect our vital organs and provide the structural support that lets our muscles move us around.  We take our bones for granted; it seems like the muscles get all the press.  Muscles are obviously dynamic, and change rapidly and visibly in response to training.

For that reason, some people think of bone as sort of a blah, inert substance that’s little more than organic concrete.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  Bone is living, vibrant tissue, which is absolutely central to our health as a whole.  It’s more than just a framework.  Among other things, bones act as a factory for all kinds of blood cells and also as a backup repository for calcium.

Most people think of calcium as something they need just to keep their bones strong.  Wrong.  Calcium is used by the body for all kinds of activities… muscular contraction, proper function of nerves, and creating the electrical signals used by the heart.  So, yeah, kind of important stuff.

That’s why your body is willing to pull calcium out of the bones if your blood levels get a little low.  It’s more important to keep your heart beating than to have strong bones.  So if we want to avoid osteoporosis (weakening of the bones), a big way to do that is to avoid losing the calcium in the first place.

How?  Well, the best way is to look at why the body loses calcium.  Sure, if your dietary intake of calcium is low, you’ll lose some there.  But there are far more dramatic sources of calcium loss in the body.

In a word, sugar.

Yep, our old nemesis is back again and ready to party.  Among all the other horrible effects that sugar has on the body, refined sugar will dramatically increase the amount of calcium lost in the urine.  Which, in turn, drops the levels of calcium in the blood, and your body will respond by pulling calcium out of the bones to keep this vital element at a normal level in your bloodstream.

Soda, in particular, seems to just plain suck the calcium right out of you, so step one in avoiding osteoporosis is to cut out the sugar, including sugary drinks. This is more important than supplementation, in my opinion.  Your body can only take in so much calcium at a time (it’s just a tough nutrient to absorb), and you can lose it much faster than you can put it back.  So one more reason to cut out the sugar.

Weight bearing exercise is just as important.  Remember, bone is ALIVE.  It’s actually super-amazing stuff; it’s tough and resilient but also just flexible enough so that it gives a bit under sudden strain (which makes it less likely to break).

It also RESPONDS.  Just like your muscles respond to stress by becoming stronger, your bones will also respond to physical stress by strengthening.  The reverse is also true:  just like your muscles will atrophy (shrink up and get weak) with disuse, your bones will weaken if you don’t put them under stress consistently.

So, make sure you’re exercising and stressing those bones.  The more weight-bearing an exercise is, the better… that doesn’t mean you have to be a power-lifter, but yes, even the elderly should be doing some resistance training.

Lastly, there’s supplements.  The main thing to know about calcium supplementation is this:  you need to be taking vitamin D and magnesium along with it.  A good supplement will include them, as they’re necessary co-factors for your body to absorb and actually use the calcium.

Also, don’t bother taking more than 500 mg of calcium at a time.  Your body reaches saturation around 400-500 mg, and the rest will just pass through unused.  If you need to take more than 500 mg a day, split the doses up throughout the day.

But don’t neglect the big picture, folks!  Taking a supplement is fine, but avoiding sugar and adding in weight-bearing exericse is the main way to avoid osteoporosis and keep your bone health at a maximum!