As many as 54 million Americans have low bone density and many
of them don’t even know it. Ten million of them have such low bone density they
actually have osteoporosis.
You could be at risk for low bone density and osteoporosis if
you:
- Are a woman
– especially if you’ve had a hysterectomy or are peri- or postmenopausal
- Are over 50
years old (although you start losing more bone than you create by age 30
or 35)
- Have an
inactive lifestyle
- Have
amenorrhea because of extreme exercise
- Are a heavy
user of alcohol, tobacco, caffeine, sugar, or carbonated beverages
- Have a
chronic health condition such as diabetes, malabsorption, celiac disease,
or hyperthyroidism
- Are
small-boned and consistently below normal weight for someone your size
- Are taking
certain prescription medications long-term, such as steroids or
anticonvulsants
- Are
deficient in certain key nutrients, including vitamin D and vitamin K and
the minerals calcium and magnesium*
- Don’t get
enough exposure to the sun because you live in a high latitude, you don’t
get outside enough, or your skin is always covered when you’re outside
- Have a low
level of testosterone – even if you are a woman
- Are of
Anglo-Saxon or Asian descent
- Have a
family history of osteoporosis
How do you
know if you have osteoporosis?
Both osteopenia (characterized by low bone mineral density [BMD] that is not extreme enough to be called osteoporosis) and early-to-middle stages of osteoporosis are silent diseases because they have no symptoms.
Hence, low bone mineral density can go undetected until a bone is broken – often resulting from a situation that should not have caused a fracture. A diagnosis of osteoporosis is often found accidentally, such as when a bone is being x-rayed to determine the existence of a fracture.
Both osteopenia (characterized by low bone mineral density [BMD] that is not extreme enough to be called osteoporosis) and early-to-middle stages of osteoporosis are silent diseases because they have no symptoms.
Hence, low bone mineral density can go undetected until a bone is broken – often resulting from a situation that should not have caused a fracture. A diagnosis of osteoporosis is often found accidentally, such as when a bone is being x-rayed to determine the existence of a fracture.
Typically, when low bone mass shows up on an x-ray, as much as
one-third of the person’s bone mass has already been lost.
The only way to detect the bone loss associated with osteopenia
is with a bone scan – most commonly a low-radiation DXA scan (Dual-energy X-ray
Absorptiometry) of the hip and spine. A bone scan can detect even small changes
in a person’s bone density.
On the other hand, advanced osteoporosis will usually present with symptoms such as bone pain, backache, curvature of the upper spine presenting as a hump, and loss of height from vertebral compression fractures.
Some good
options
This advice can’t be offered enough – bank bone early in life!
It’s never too early to begin worrying about the state
of your bone health. You can start by getting regular exercise. Go outside in the
sunshine and do something you like so it’s not a chore.
Eat a bone-healthy diet, such as:
- Green leafy
vegetables like kale, bok choy, broccoli, and cabbage, which are sources
of calcium, magnesium, and vitamin K (but avoid spinach as a source of
calcium, because it is high in oxalates that bind calcium)
- Dairy
products like milk, cheese, and yogurt, which are good sources of calcium,
vitamin K, and vitamin D (most milk in the U.S. and all milk in Canada is
fortified with vitamin D)
- Fish, such
as sardines with small, edible bones that are a good source of calcium;
oily fish, especially wild-caught salmon, which provide a good source of
vitamin D
- Soy
products, which are sources of calcium, magnesium, and vitamin K
(fermented soy)
- Almonds and
sesame seeds/sesame butter, which are good sources of calcium and
magnesium
- Beans and
other legumes, which are a good source of calcium and magnesium
- Avocadoes,
which provide a good source of magnesium
- And, yes,
dark chocolate, which is high in magnesium
Nutrient
content of foods can vary widely
Although eating bone-healthy foods that are high in vitamin D, vitamin K, calcium, and magnesium should be encouraged, it can be difficult to get the ideal amounts of these nutrients from your diet alone. Particularly because the amounts of these nutrients in foods can vary widely.
For example, a study of the vitamin D content of farmed salmon found they had only 25 percent of the amount of vitamin D as wild-caught salmon.1 The study found an average of 988 IU vitamin D3 in 3.5 ounces of wild-caught salmon compared to an average of 240 IU vitamin D3 in farm-raised salmon.
Although eating bone-healthy foods that are high in vitamin D, vitamin K, calcium, and magnesium should be encouraged, it can be difficult to get the ideal amounts of these nutrients from your diet alone. Particularly because the amounts of these nutrients in foods can vary widely.
For example, a study of the vitamin D content of farmed salmon found they had only 25 percent of the amount of vitamin D as wild-caught salmon.1 The study found an average of 988 IU vitamin D3 in 3.5 ounces of wild-caught salmon compared to an average of 240 IU vitamin D3 in farm-raised salmon.
I work with my patients to getting to the cause of their bone
loss which can include nutritional & vitamin & mineral deficiencies and
hormonal deficiencies. I have had eighty year old patients who have reversed
their osteoporosis.
