Embrace your skeleton with these good health practices
Updated 4:50 pm, Friday, October 26, 2012
In this season of tricks-or-treats, there's lots of skeletons lurking around.
And while those costumed corpses are a fanciful sight, they can bring to mind a grave issue — bone health.
By taking care of our bones, we can scare off a slew of frightening conditions, from fractures and osteoporosis to arthritis and back pain, experts said.
"It's really important to keep your skeleton in good health," said Susan Randall, senior director of science and education at the National Osteoporosis Society in Washington, D.C. "It's connected to our quality of life and to our overall health."
Most people only think about bone health in their old age, but bone density, Randall said, should be thought of as a "life savings account" — a fund you start investing in with healthy choices from the time you're born. "That way, we'll have enough in the bank to last us through our lifetime," she added.
Inevitably, age will turn our bones brittle — the result of diminishing hormone levels (testosterone in men and estrogen in women). But there are ways to keep them stronger longer, such as eating well, exercising and making positive lifestyle choices.
Here are the recommended daily dietary allowance for calcium:
700 mg: children ages 1 to 3
1000 mg: children ages 4 to 8
1,300 mg: children ages 9 to 18
1,000 mg: men ages 19 to 70
1,000 mg: women ages 19 to 50
1,200 mg: women ages 51 to 70
1,300 mg: pregnant and lactating women ages 14 to 18
1,000 mg: pregnant and lactating women ages 19 to 50
Here are the recommended daily dietary allowance for Vitamin D:
600 IU: children ages 1 to 18
600 IU: adults ages 19 to 70
800 IU: adults ages 71 and older
600 IU: pregnant and lactating women
Source: Institute of Medicine
James Figge, an endocrinologist at St. Peter's Health Partners in Albany, said bone health begins with two essential ingredients: calcium and vitamin D. During childhood and adolescence, the body uses these nutrients to build strong bones, a process that's all but complete by the end of the teenage years.
"If you don't get enough calcium and vitamin D, then you won't reach the maximum bone density you should have by the time you reach your 20s," Figge said.
Everyone should continue to take these supplements into adulthood, albeit in smaller doses (unless you're pregnant or lactating, in which case you may need to take more), experts said.
Exercising our skeletons is another means of keeping our bones buff. Experts particularly recommend weight-bearing exercises such as walking, running, jumping and lifting weights. "You're looking to do exercise that supports your body weight against gravity," Figge said. "If you're an astronaut, you lose bone density very fast. When you put stress on your bones, that helps to maintain bone density."
Lifestyle choices are also important when it comes to sturdy skeletons. Experts caution against smoking and excessive alcohol consumption — two of the biggest no-nos if you want to keep your bones in tip-top shape.
"(Smoke and alcohol) bring toxins into the body, which is going to affect your bones, like it would any other system," Randall said.
The impact of weak bones can be frightening. Osteoporosis, a disease related to low bone mineral density, increases the risk for fractures. But the disease itself isn't going to break your bones — it's a slip on icy steps or a loose rug that will do it. Low-trauma microfractures can also occur in the spine, a condition that gives many elderly people that hunched-over look.If and when they happen, fractures can kill your quality of life, limiting mobility and triggering medical conditions such as infections, pneumonia and even depression, experts said.
"Most people imagine having an active, involved life as we get older, but if you get osteoporosis, and you have a fracture, there's other problems that can arise," Randall said.
But it doesn't have to come to that, experts said. By keeping our bones strong, our skeletons can keep lurking for years to come.
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