If you are interested in rebuilding bone density, the good news is that in most cases, it is possible to rebuild. Bones are living tissues just like muscle and with adequate exercise and proper nutrition they can be rebuilt and strengthened. Losing bone density can result in osteoporosis, a disease that silently robs your bones of strength, causing them to break easily. Many times a broken bone is the first sign that you have lost bone density.
Identification
Bone mineral density is measured using a dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry test, or DXA test. A DXA test is a type of X-ray that "measures how many grams of calcium and other bone minerals are packed into a segment of bone," according to MayoClinic.com. Your results will reveal whether you have normal bones, porous bones, low bone mass, osteoporosis or even severe osteoporosis.
Considerations
Bone is living tissue, meaning that your body breaks down and replaces old bone cells with new ones. As you age, more bone may be broken down than is replaced, resulting in bone that resembles the insides of a honeycomb. As the condition worsens, the spaces in this honeycomb continue to grow larger, the outer shell of your bones gets thinner and more brittle, and the interior bone structure deteriorates. The process makes your bones fragile and likely to break.
Strengthening Exercises
With proper exercise, bones can be rebuilt and strengthened, according to the Cleveland Clinic. It recommends strengthening exercises, using free weights or weight machines, done two to three times a week, at the proper intensity. "It's important to lift enough weight to stimulate bone growth," says Cleveland Clinic physical therapist Maribeth Gibbon, PT, who advises doing fewer reps with heavier weights. Target the spine, hips and wrists, which are the areas most prone to fracture. You can increase the bone density in your hips by stomping your feet, four stomps on each foot, twice a day. Pretend you are attempting to crush a can to determine the proper amount of pressure.
Weight-Bearing Cardiovascular Exercises
In addition to strengthening exercises, weight-bearing cardiovascular workouts, done three to five times a week, will improve bone density. Walking, jogging and dancing are preferable to swimming or biking because they are weight-bearing. Gibbons notes that you must place the appropriate force on your bones by turning up your exercise intensity. She recommends that you increase your pace and go up and down hills to challenge your skeleton appropriately.
Calcium and Vitamin D
Proper nutrition, including eating foods rich in calcium and vitamin D, will keep your bones strong and healthy. If you are over 50 and want to rebuild or maintain bone density, you need 1,200 mg of calcium and 600 international units, or IUs, of vitamin D every day. Those over 70 need 800 IUs of vitamin D, which your body uses to absorb calcium. Low-fat dairy, canned fish, dark leafy greens, eggs, cereal and fortified bread, milk and juice are dietary sources.
References
- National Institute on Aging: Osteoporosis: The Bone Thief
- National Institute of Health: Bone Mass Measurement: What the Numbers Mean
- MayoClinic.com: Bone Density Test
- Cleveland Clinic: Osteoporosis: Workouts that Can Help Rebuild Bone
- National Institutes of Health: Osteoporosis
- Media-Newswire: Vitamin D Press Release
