In osteoporosis, the inside of the bones becomes porous from a loss of calcium (see the picture below). This is called losing bone mass. Over time, this weakens the bones and makes them more likely to break.
My mother has been a big proponent of increasing bone density since her own mother suffered from osteoporosis and I want to help increase women’s awareness of it especially for young women. It is never too early to start a good routine of taking care of your bones so down the road they are strong and reliable for you.
Osteoporosis is much more common in women than in men. This is because women have less bone mass than men, tend to live longer and take in less calcium, and need the female hormone estrogen to keep their bones strong. If men live long enough, they are also at risk of getting osteoporosis later in life.
Once total bone mass has peaked—around age 35—all adults start to lose it. In women, the rate of bone loss speeds up after menopause, when estrogen levels fall. Since the ovaries make estrogen, faster bone loss may also occur if both ovaries are removed by surgery.
But did you know that there are lots of things you can do about this? In fact you can start today by increasing your calcium intake to 1000mg per day, plus adding Vitamin D (you can do this by going out into the sun for 15 minutes per day), adding green vegetables for vitamins needed to lay down bone, getting enough protein in your diet, and doing some boot camp exercises that increase bone density.
Weight training can help increase bone density, as well as jumping jacks, jumping rope, jogging and brisk walking. Start circuit training and do reps at a low weight to begin. Increase the reps for more resistance. Be sure at add in those jumping jacks too. A study done the University of Toronto shows that aerobic exercise, such as walking, jogging, or dance, improved the amount of calcium in the upper body and upper thighs, two areas at risk for fractures.
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