Building and maintaining strong bones can help prevent osteoporosis, a condition in which bones become porous, weak and brittle. Fractures and broken bones occur much more easily in adults with osteoporosis. Building and maintaining strong bones early on in life can help prevent osteoporosis, according to the National Osteoporosis Foundation. Follow certain strategies to maintain your bone density, and encourage children to take the same steps to build strong bones as well.
Calcium and Vitamin D
Calcium helps your body build and maintain strong bones. This essential nutrient also assists with the functioning of the heart as well as the muscular and nervous systems. Calcium also allows your blood to clot. A diet with insufficient calcium can increase your risk of osteoporosis. The National Osteoporosis Foundation recommends that adults under the age of 50 get 1,000 mg of calcium each day, and adults over the age of 50 should get 1,200 mg of calcium each day. Children ages 9 to 18 should get 1,300 mg of calcium, according to MayoClinic.com. Children under the age of 1 should get 210 to 270 mg of calcium, children ages 1 to 3 should get 500 mg and children ages 4 to 8 should get 800 mg, according to MayoClinic.com. You can get calcium by eating dairy products, almonds, spinach, broccoli, salmon or tofu. You also need to get enough vitamin D, a nutrient that helps your body absorb calcium. You can get vitamin D through sunlight and from foods such as eggs, fish and fortified milk.
Weight-Bearing Exercise
Just as weight-lifting helps to strengthen your muscles, weight-bearing exercise strengthens your bones. When you force your bones to carry the weight of your body and handle low-impact or high-impact exercise, you help your bones to become denser and stronger. High-impact exercises such as running, dancing, hiking, climbing stairs or playing sports strengthen bones the fastest, but low-impact exercises such as walking or exercising on an elliptical trainer can also help to build bone density, according to the National Osteoporosis Foundation. To strengthen the muscles and bones in your upper body, perform weight-lifting exercises or strength-training exercises with resistance bands. If your primary source of exercise is biking, swimming or another non-impact form of exercise, supplement these activities with weight-bearing exercise.
