{"id":821,"date":"2020-04-17T15:22:24","date_gmt":"2020-04-17T15:22:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/healthmedguru.com\/?p=821"},"modified":"2020-04-17T15:22:24","modified_gmt":"2020-04-17T15:22:24","slug":"how-to-keep-bones-healthy-and-prevent-osteoporosis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/healthmedguru.com\/how-to-keep-bones-healthy-and-prevent-osteoporosis\/","title":{"rendered":"How to keep bones healthy and prevent Osteoporosis?"},"content":{"rendered":"

When we think of aging, a long list of health problems arises in our mind. Osteoporosis is one of the most common of these health problems. That is why it is as important to keep bones healthy as it is to maintain heart health. Yet, most of us don’t realize it or make an effort to maintain a healthy bone-mineral-density.<\/p>\n

What is Osteoporosis?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Osteoporosis is a disease in which the bones weaken and get more vulnerable to fractures. It is called a \u201csilent disease\u201d because you cannot feel the weakening of your bones, until a bone breaks. While all bones become weak, the bones in the hip, backbone (spine), and wrist are often most at risk. As per some studies, 1 in 2 women and 1 in 4 men will suffer a fracture one time or the other due to osteoporosis.<\/p>\n

While even young people can have osteoporosis, its risk grows as you get older. This risk increases for women after menopause. A woman may lose 20% of her bone mass within the first five years after menopause. Although this bone loss may slow down later, it continues weakening the bone. The bone loss in men is slower. But by age 65 to 70, men and women lose bone at the same rate.<\/p>\n

What happens to bones as we age?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Bone is made of living tissue. To maintain the strength of bones, your body constantly breaks down old bone tissue to replace them with new bone tissue. However, the balance between old and new bone tissues start getting disturbed around age 30. The bone mass starts decreasing. As a person ages, more bone tissues may be broken than are\u00a0replaced. This bone loss may lead to Osteoporosis.<\/p>\n

If you take a close look at the inside of bone, you will see something like a honeycomb. When a person develops osteoporosis, the spaces in this honeycomb grow larger while the bone in the honeycomb gets smaller. The outer shell of the bones also become thinner. In short, bones become weak and more prone to fractures.<\/p>\n

How to keep bones healthy?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The first thing you need to remember is the earlier you start caring for your bones, the better it is. As you must have heard, prevention is always better than cure. If you have strong bones when young and make efforts to maintain their strength, you can keep them stronger for later.<\/p>\n

Healthy food for healthy bones:<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The first step of health care always starts with a healthy diet. The food you eat has a big impact on your bones. To keep bones healthy, eat foods that are\u00a0rich in calcium and vitamin D.<\/p>\n

Calcium:<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Calcium is one of the main building blocks of bone. If you have Calcium deficiency, it will have a direct impact on your bones. Your body cannot produce calcium. So your diet must include food items rich in this mineral.<\/p>\n

Dairy products such as milk, yogurt, cheese are a rich source of calcium. Other food products rich in calcium include soya beans, tofu, poppy seeds, almonds, okra, collard greens, spinach and kale, beans and lentils, some fish, like sardines, salmon, perch, and rainbow trout.<\/p>\n

How much calcium do you need?<\/strong><\/h4>\n

As per some studies, once you cross the age of 9, you need three to four servings of dairy products per day to meet your calcium needs. Moreover, women need more calcium during pregnancy and lactation. And everyone needs more calcium after age 70 to keep bones healthy.<\/p>\n

Calcium requirement as per age and gender:<\/strong><\/h4>\n