NEW FLASH!!! calcium is key for healthy bones. Getting enough calcium throughout you life helps build bones up and helps slow the loss of bone. Increased calcium intake—particularly in the form of the currently recommended three glasses of milk per day—will help prevent osteoporosis. Each year, osteoporosis leads to more than 1.5 million fractures, including 300,000 broken hips.
Calcium is a mineral that the body needs for building and maintaining bones and teeth, blood clotting, the transmission of nerve impulses, and the regulation of the heart's rhythm. Some studies indicate that low levels of calcium are related to obesity.
1 percent of the calcium in the human body is stored in the blood and other tissues. Ninety-nine percent is found in the bones and teeth.
The body gets the calcium it needs in two ways.
One is by eating foods and supplements that contain calcium. Good food sources include dairy products, which have the highest concentration per serving of highly absorbable calcium, and dark leafy greens or dried beans, which have varying amounts of absorbable calcium.
The other way the body gets calcium is by removing it from storage in your bones. This happens when your blood calcium levels are too low. Ideally, the calcium that is "checked out" of storage in your bones will be "checked in" again later. But, that doesn't always happen. Most important, this payback can't be accomplished simply by eating more calcium.
There are a number of lifestyle factors that can influence calcium storage in your bones:
- Getting regular exercise, especially weight-bearing and muscle strengthening exercise.
- Getting adequate vitamin D, whether through diet, exposure to sunshine, or supplements.
- Consuming enough calcium to reduce the amount the body has to borrow from bone.
- Consuming adequate vitamin K, found in green, leafy vegetables.
Physical activity that puts some strain or stress on bones causes the bones to retain and possibly even gain density throughout life. If you look at the shin bones of champion kick boxers you will understand. Cells within the bone sense this stress and respond by making the bone stronger and denser. "Weight-bearing" exercises include weightlifting, walking, dancing, racquet sports, jogging, stair-climbing, and hiking.
Swimming is a good exercies, but because water supports the bones, rather than putting stress on them, it's not considered a good "weight-bearing" exercise for bone strength. Also be aware: physical activity doesn't strengthen all your bones equally, just those that are stressed, so you need a variety of exercises or activities to keep all your bones healthy.
Another way that physical activity helps, is that it increases coordination and strength. Active people can often avoid the falls and situations that cause fractures.
