According to the scientific literature, your nutrition influences bone health and your risk of developing diseases such as osteoporosis. Calcium, protein and vitamin D are revered as being particularly beneficial to bone health. No matter what your age, maintaining healthy levels of these dietary components should maximize your chances of lifelong bone strength.
What is Bone Health?
Bone health is measured as the amount and quality of the skeleton, according to a 2000 review by R. P. Heaney and colleagues in the journal "Osteoporosis International." During the first few decades of life, you accrue a "peak bone mass." This is the level at which your skeletal mass it as its highest, and is a benchmark used by medical professionals to assess your overall bone health. A lower peak bone mass indicates a higher chance of developing osteoporosis in later life.
Influence of Nutrition
Bone health is influenced by many factors. More than 60 percent of bone mass is determined by your genes, says Professor Rene Rizzoli M.D., of the Geneva University Hospitals and Faculty of Medicine. Environmental factors including nutrition make up for the other 40 percent. Nutrition affects the accumulation of bone, which is usually achieved by age 20, and the loss of bone -- a normal part of aging, according to Rizzoli.
Calcium, Protein and Healthy Bones
Calcium and protein improve bone health. Ensuring that children have high enough calcium and protein intake raises their peak bone mass. Children that avoid milk have smaller stature and increased risk of bone fractures, states Rizzoli. Diet is not only important in childhood -- even after peak bone mass is reached, calcium still helps reduce osteoporosis risk, according to Jasminka Ilich, Ph.D., and Jane Kerstetter, Ph.D., in a Journal of the American College of Nutrition report. Healthy levels of both calcium and protein should be maintained -- it is not sufficient to increase just one, because they interact with each other to influence bone health, warns Robert Heaney and Donald Layman of the Universities of Omaha and Illinois.
Other Foods for Healthy Bones
Although the exact way in which increasing dietary fruit and vegetables can improve bone health remain unknown, scientific research suggests that it does. There is certainly no evidence that this will harm bone health, according a report in the British Journal of Nutrition. Therefore, considering all of the additional health benefits of eating more fruit and vegetables, this is definitely a good idea for overall health. This study also showed that vitamin K supplementation promoted a healthy skeleton. Vitamin D is as important for bone health as calcium and protein, reports Jean-Philippe Bonjour, M.D. in the "Journal of the American College of Nutrition."
A Growing Problem
Professor Kevin Cashman warns that since the Western world is getting older on average, the incidence of bone disease is growing. This is because poor bone health chiefly shows itself in later life in the form of conditions such as osteoporosis. As people live longer, the likelihood of them developing osteoporosis grows.
Poor Bone Health
Caloric deficiency is associated with muscle wasting, which in turn leads to less bone being formed and more bone being reabsorbed by the body. This is why illnesses associated with reduced calorie intake, such as Anorexia nervosa, often impair the accrual of peak bone mass and lead to poor bone health in later life.
References
- "Osteoporosis International"; R. P. Heaney, S. Abrams, B. Dawson-Hughes, A. Looker, R. Marcus, V. Matkovic and C. Weaver; Peak Bone Mass; December 2000
- "Journal of Nutrition"; K. D. Cashman; Diet, Nutrition and Bone Health; November 2007
- "Best Practice & Research Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism"; R. Rizzoli; Nutrition: Its Role in Bone Health; October 2008
- "Journal of the American College of Nutrition"; J. Ilich and J. Kerstetter; Nutrition in Bone Health Revisited: A Story Beyond Calcium; June 2000
- "Journal of the American College of Nutrition"; J-P Bonjour; Dietary Protein: An Essential Nutrient For Bone Health; June 2005
