by Susan Brady | Apr 18, 2016 | Nutrition
It is well known that eating a Mediterranean-based diet has beneficial effects on your health. Numerous studies throughout the years have shown that this diet can help prevent cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, obesity, as well as decrease the risk of developing cancer, Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease. Furthermore, it has been shown to help keep your brain young and improve longevity! What more could we want? How about strong bones!
Recently, researchers examining the effects of diet on bone health found that postmenopausal women who ate a Mediterranean diet were less likely to suffer from hip fractures. After analyzing the data from the Women’s Health Initiative study, researchers found that women who most closely followed a Mediterranean diet had a 20 percent lower risk for hip fractures compared to women who didn’t followed other diets. The authors of the study concluded “these results support the notion that following a healthy dietary pattern may play a role in the maintenance of bone health in postmenopausal women.” The study was published online March 28 in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine.
What is it about the Mediterranean diet that supports bone health? The diet emphasizes eating foods like fish, vegetables, fruits, legumes, whole grains, nuts, seeds, and olive oil while limiting meat, cheese, sweets and processed foods. These nutrient rich foods provide all the important minerals and vitamins necessary for keeping bones strong as well as the necessary proteins from plant and animal sources along with encouraging the consumption of healthy fats.
- Vegetables provide important bone building vitamins such as K, C, B6, folate and minerals like calcium, manganese, copper, potassium.
- Fruits are abundant in vitamin C, manganese and potassium.
- Legumes, such as lentils and beans, are rich in the minerals phosphorus, magnesium, zinc, manganese, boron and folate.
- Nuts and seeds not only provide healthy fats, but also an abundance of minerals such as calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, zinc, manganese, copper, boron.
- Whole grains, such as oats, millet, barley, quinoa, brown rice and whole wheat, provide needed silica, manganese, phosphorus, copper, vitamin B6, folate.
- Fish, not only a wonderful source of protein, but fatty fish such as Salmon and Mackerel provide omega 3 fatty acids. Salmon, sardines, tuna, mackerel and trout are healthy choices and provide vitamin A, B6, B12 and D, as well as phosphorus and calcium.
- Lentils, seeds, nuts, beans and grains also provide valuable proteins as well as a plethora of vitamins and minerals.
- Olive oil provide key polyphenols that have strong anti-inflammatory effects. The fats from avocadoes are equally as beneficial.
- Wine in moderation. Wine, particularly red wine, contains the antioxidant resveratrol which has been shown to support healthy lipid levels in the bloodstream as well as anti-inflammatory properties. However, alcohol is acidic and can lead to leeching of calcium from the bones, so moderation is imperative.
What don’t you see on this list?
- Cheese and yogurt are eaten regularly in the traditional Mediterranean diet, but in moderate amounts. Milk is not included in this traditional diet. Adequate calcium in this diet comes from vegetables, nuts and fish.
- Eggs and poultry in moderation. Though packed with good protein and other nutrients, eggs and poultry are only eaten 1-2 times a week.
- Meat is limited in this diet and is only eaten 1-2 times a month. Limiting red meat may be beneficial to bones because meat has been shown to be very acidic and can cause the leeching of calcium from the bones.
- Sweets and processed foods are limited. Sugar-sweetened beverages, processed meat, refined grains, refined oils and other highly processed foods are void of nutrients, and are often considered anti-nutrients. Anti-nutrients interfere with the absorption and utilization of essential nutrients in the body, which can result in impaired bone growth and strength.
The Mediterranean diet is effective in supporting bone health because it provides a varied diet full of nutrients, anti-oxidants, anti-inflammatory and alkalizing foods. I think most importantly, the JAMA study highlights how an overall healthy diet may be more important in supporting bone health than just focusing on the intake of a few widely emphasized nutrients, like calcium and vitamin D. Unfortunately, when it comes to preventing and combating bone loss and osteoporosis, nutrition is often ignored in favor of pharmacological medicine. As a society, we are all becoming more aware how a nutritious diet maintains health, prevents disease and even helps control and/or treats chronic illness. Nutrition, along with exercise, can do the same for osteoporosis!
Check out my Bone Building Nutrient Chart to see what minerals are crucial to your bone health: Bone Building Nutrients
by Susan Brady | Oct 22, 2015 | Nutrition
The importance of diet is often underestimated in the quest for maintaining strong bones. However, the foods you eat will supply the essential vitamins and minerals needed for new bone deposition and the prevention of excessive bone loss. Calcium and vitamin D are not the only nutrients that contribute to bone strength; vitamin K, vitamin C, magnesium, potassium and other lesser known nutrients are critical as well. Eating fruits and vegetables in season provides an abundance of the vitamins and minerals that keep both your bones and your body healthy and strong.
Not only do freshly harvested foods taste better, but there is also fair amount of research that suggests that eating foods that are in season are better for you nutritionally as well. Produce reaches its peak nutritional value when it is fully ripe. Once harvested, fruits and vegetables begin to lose their nutrient content. Produce out of season is generally grown far away, picked before it is ripe and then ripens in the truck on its journey to various grocery stores. This practice allows produce to survive days or weeks on trucks and in grocery stores but doesn’t provide your body with the richest nutrient content.
Eating foods when nature produces them is what people the world over have done naturally through most of history. So as you adjust your wardrobe for the fall season, be sure to adjust your diet to take in the fall foods that will add wonderful flavor to your meals and exceptional nutrients for your bones.
Fall for these foods to strengthen your bones:
- Apples – Not only are apples nature’s ultimate fast food, but they contain the flavonoid phloridzin. Phloridzin is only found in apples and research suggests that it may protect post-menopausal women from osteoporosis and may also increase bone density. Apples are also high in vitamin C and boron, two other nutrients necessary for bone strength.
- Pears –High in the minerals magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, calcium and copper. This makes pears a delicious way to get these minerals that can help reduce bone loss.
- Cauliflower – An excellent source of vitamin K and one of the hallmark anti-inflammatory nutrients. Cauliflower is also high in folate, fiber, vitamins B5 and B6. Try it roasted or mashed for a change of pace.
- Pumpkin Seeds– Save those seeds when carving out your pumpkins! Pumpkin seeds are a great source of the minerals phosphorus, magnesium, manganese, copper, zinc and iron. One-third cup of pumpkin seeds contains nearly half of the recommended daily amount of magnesium needed for bone health. Magnesium acts synergistically with calcium for proper bone formation.
- Squash – Winter squashes are a nutritional jackpot! They are an excellent source of vitamin A, vitamin C, potassium and fiber, and a good source of zinc, calcium, and manganese. Squash also provides important anti-inflammatory nutrients such as omega-3 fatty acids, carotenoids like lutein, zeaxanthin, and beta-carotene, as well as unusual anti-inflammatory polysaccharides called homogalacturonan.
Include these delicious and nutritious fall foods in your diet to help reduce your chances of developing osteoporosis as you age, and ensure strength and durability for your bones throughout your life.
Try these wonderful bone building Fall recipes!
Roasted Cauliflower
Apple Butternut Squash Soup
by Susan Brady | Apr 21, 2015 | Healthy aging
Even though bone loss occurs mainly in women over the age of 50, young women can reduce their risk for bone loss later in life by building up their “bone bank” when they are young. The more bone mass you build up, or put in your bank, when you are young, the more likely you are to have stronger, healthier bones later in life.
Building peak bone mass occurs during your childhood and teen years. Peak mass refers to the greatest mass, strength and density your bones can accumulate. Let’s say your peak mass at 20 is 100%. When you begin to withdraw bone mass later in life, and your bone density drops to 80% for instance, you still have fairly good bone density and strength. But if you are only able to accumulate 80% bone mass when you are young, later in life the strength and density of your bone may only be a mere 60%, leaving you susceptible to osteoporosis and fractures. So the more bone mass you accumulate when you’re young, the greater chance your bones will stay healthier and stronger later in life.
By the age of 20, most women have reached their maximum bone density. Poor diet, excessive weight loss and inadequate or excessive physical activity can result in a failure to achieve peak bone mass as a young women, leaving one at a greater risk for osteoporosis as an adult.
What can teens do now to build their bone bank?
1. Get enough calcium, magnesium, vitamins D and K through a well balanced diet
- Yogurt, without too much sugar (< 17 grams) is a great way to get calcium
- Green leafy vegetables like spinach and kale provide calcium as well as vitamin K
- Pumpkin and sunflower seeds, almonds, cashews, beans and brown rice are great sources of magnesiu
- Salmon, eggs, fortified cow’s milk and tuna provide vitamin D as does safe sun exposure
2. Reduce the amount of sugary foods and drinks and processed foods like cakes, cookies and chips
3. Moderate exercise
- Impact exercises like jogging/running, racquet sports, power walking and weight-lifting are the most effective for preventing bone loss
- Excessive aerobic exercise can cause “exercise-induced” amenorrhea which is a disruption in a women’s hormonal cycle and can actually contribute to the early onset of osteoporosis
4. Don’t smoke or drink
It’s never too early to start taking care of your bones. While not common, young women can get osteoporosis too. Having good eating and exercise habits during your childhood and teen years will not only keep you strong and healthy, but also build up your bone bank to ensure you have healthy bones for life.
by Susan Brady | Mar 5, 2015 | Exercise
Is walking good enough to build bones? Studies have shown mixed results on the benefits of walking for increasing bone density.
To keep bones healthy and strong, you need to continually stress the bones through activity. Just as muscle gets stronger with use, bones also become stronger and denser with exercise. Activities that are weight bearing and involve impact are the most useful for increasing or maintaining bone mass. Examples of high-impact weight-bearing activities include jogging, climbing stairs, hiking up and down hills, aerobic dancing, and racquet sports. Walking is considered to be a low impact exercise resulting in less stress to the bones and why some suggest that walking alone will not increase bone density. But if you change up the way you walk, you can increase your chances of building bone mass through walking.
The key to the bone strengthening properties of walking is the amount of positive stress and impact you create with your stride. For those just beginning a walking program, just the impact of your foot hitting the ground will initially be enough to generate stress and new bone formation. But for those who have been walking for a while at the same pace and distance, your bones may have adapted to the stress of your exercise routine, reducing further bone building potential.
If you have been walking for a while, here are some ways to vary your routine to increase stress on the bones and improve the bone building benefits of walking.
1. Pick up the pace. Walking briskly will increase the impact of your foot on the pavement and add some extra stress on the bones.
2. Walk up and down hills to increase and vary the impact.
3. Add backwards or sideways walking, high knee stepping, or periodically increase your stride length. Try doing one of these activities for 1 minute intervals for a total of 8 times during your walk.
4. Add modified jogging to your walk. Take “baby steps” but use a jogging motion. This gives great impact when your foot hits the ground. Start slow, only jogging for 10-20 seconds at a time, 2-3 times during your walk for the first few weeks.
5. Add some weight. To increase the bone strengthening benefits of walking, you can add a weight vest or place a small amount of weight in a securely tied backpack. Start off with 1 pound of weight and then gradually increase the weight over the next several months to a maximum of 10 pounds.
6. Try walking poles. They are a great way to promote better posture, add in balance when walking outside over uneven terrain, and promote weight bearing and stress through the upper body as well as the lower body when walking.
If at any time you feel pain in your ankles, knees, hip or back with any of these new activities, stop and go back to your regular walking.
Although walking may not produce the same bone building results as high impact exercises, it is one of the best exercises for many people because it is convenient, one of the safest forms of exercise, and easy on the body’s joints. Walking is also beneficial to the soul because it may mean spending special time with a friend, enjoying pretty scenery, and breathing in fresh air.
It can be confusing to know what the right exercise is for you and your body. I can help you get started or show you how to maximize the bone building benefits of the exercises you are doing currently. Schedule a free 15 minute consult today!
If you have serious medical problems, check with your health care provider before starting any exercise program.
by Susan Brady | Feb 2, 2015 | Nutrition
I have always been impressed by the fact that the largest animals, in need of having the biggest, strongest bones, are herbivores. Horses, giraffes, and elephants, all weighing well over 1,000 pounds, sustain their bone strength by eating vegetation. That’s right vegetables, not milk! Horses eat mainly grass and other plants, giraffes browse on the leaves of bushes and trees, and elephants graze on grass, tree leaves, flowers, wild fruits, twigs, shrubs, bamboo and bananas.
Vegetables are often overlooked as an important component for those wanting to maintain or build strong bones, yet they should be a staple in every diet for those concerned about bone loss. Vegetables, in particular leafy greens, contain not only calcium, but also vitamin K, magnesium and other minerals and nutrients needed to build bone. One cup of green leafy vegetables like spinach, collard greens, mustard greens, turnip greens, and kale can provide you with just as much calcium as 1 cup of milk.
Plant foods are also an excellent source of vitamin K. Vitamin K helps to limit excessive demineralization of bone as well as activates osteocalcin, the main protein in bone, which secures calcium molecules inside of the bone. Green leafy vegetables along with nuts, seeds, and legumes are among the best food sources of magnesium. About 50 to 60% of a person’s magnesium is stored in the bone, and as such, it plays a key role in bone metabolism.
A diet rich in plant foods also helps to maintain an alkaline/acid balance in the body (called the pH). The pH of blood is critical to sustain life and when the pH of the blood starts getting low (becomes more acidic) the body has to find a way to increase it, or make it more alkaline. Calcium, one of the main alkaline minerals, gets released from the bones to restore the acid/base balance. So a diet high in foods that increase the acidity in our blood can cause leeching of calcium from our bones, making them weak and fragile. Increasing vegetables and greens in your diet will provide the key alkalizing minerals that maintain a healthy pH and strong bones.
What is the most important food to strengthen your bones and keep them healthy? Green leafy vegetables! Eat like horse and you will have strong bones for life!
