Osteoporosis

What is Osteoporosis?

Healthy bones have a thick outer shell mostly made up of calcium salts and a strong inner mesh. The inner mesh is made up of a protein called collagen, calcium salts, and other minerals. The inner mesh has a hollow in the middle where the blood vessels and bone marrow can be found.

When calcium and minerals in the bone mesh are lost the mesh size becomes bigger, making it spongy and weak. This results in loss of bone density and when this happens bones become fragile. Osteoporosis can affect the whole skeleton but the wrist, spine and hip are common areas to break due to a bump or fall.

Recent research

Most recently, the importance of vitamin D in bone health has been revaluated. Vitamin D is vital for healthy bones as it controls how much calcium gets into our bodies and how much of that gets into our bones. Vitamin D rich  foods include milk, cheese, sardines, cooked greens. Expose yourself to sun a few minutes a day. Or, take a multivitamin mineral supplement. Supplementation with vitamin D (400-2,000 IU per day) together with calcium (300-600 mg per day) may reduce the risk of falls and fall-related fractures in the elderly. Vitamin D deficiency is quite common in cases of hip fractures.

Lack of vitamin D

Most elderly patients do not get enough vitamin D through sun exposure, particularly in cold climates with long winters. Vitamin D can be supplemented by taking a multivitamin and mineral complex, or through cod liver oil. A dosage of 400 to 800 units should be adequate. Something as simple as sitting by the window or taking walks outside could be helpful.

Calcium

Calcium supplements are important for osteoporosis prevention and treatment but they are not a cure by themselves. The mineral supplement can be taken at mealtime with dinner. However, calcium from food is a better option. Calcium from dietary sources is associated with a shift in estrogen metabolism toward the active 16alpha-hydroxyl metabolic pathway and with greater bone mineral density and thus may produce more favorable effects in bone health in postmenopausal women than will calcium from supplements. Take no more than 300 to 600 mg a day in divided dosages.

Magnesium

Magnesium is so often linked with calcium. An abundance of one lends to deficiency in the other. So Calcium is best taken with magnesium.

Nutrition for Osteoporosis

There are many other vitamins and herbs that may help with Osteoporosis. A small selection can be found below.