Throughout your lifetime, your body breaks down old bone and generates new bone. This process, called bone resorption, is the most rapid during times of growth and development, although it occurs at all ages. Your bones grow the fastest between the ages of 9 and 18. Bone density is the highest between the ages of 25 and 35, and declines as you age. Your body requires larger amounts of vitamins and minerals during rapid periods of bone resorption than during slower periods.
Calcium
Your body uses calcium to create a bone structure called hydroxyapatite. Without hydroxyapaptite, bones would not grow properly and newly formed bones would be weak and prone to breakage. According to "Nutrition and You" by Joan Salge Blake, calcium contributes approximately 40 percent of the weight of your bones. To ensure that your body contains enough calcium to help your bones grow properly, it is vital that you consume enough calcium through your diet.
Because bone growth is the most rapid during developing years, adolescents and teenagers between 9 and 18 require the most calcium, at 1,300 mg per day. Calcium needs decline to 1,000 mg per day for adults between 19 and 50. After the age of 50, bones begin to lose density. To make up for this loss, adults over the age of 50 should consume 1,200 mg of calcium daily. The best sources of calcium include milk, yogurt and cheese. Non-dairy sources of calcium include broccoli, kale, canned salmon that contains the bones and fortified juices and cereals.
Phosphorus
In order to create hydroxyapatite, your body requires phosphorus as well as calcium. The majority of the phosphorus in your body, or approximately 85 percent, is found in your bones.
To allow the body to create healthy bones, children and teenagers between 9 and 18 should consume 1,250 mg of phosphorus per day. Adults 19 and older should consume 700 mg of phosphorus daily. The best dietary sources of phosphorus are foods from animal sources, such as meat, fish, poultry and dairy products. Phosphorus is also added to many foods as a preservative.
Vitamin D
Vitamin D stimulates the absorption of calcium and phosphorus in your digestive tract and ensures that your blood contains enough of these minerals to allow healthy bones to grow. Without vitamin D, calcium and phosphorus would not enter your blood and instead be eliminated from the body.
Children and adults between the ages of 1 and 70 require 15 mcg of vitamin D daily. Elderly adults have slightly increased vitamin D needs, at 20 mcg per day. The best way to get vitamin D in the diet is through fortified milk, enriched breakfast cereals, yogurt and fatty fish, such as salmon and sardines.
Vitamin K
Vitamin K acts as a coenzyme to alter a protein called osteocalcin. Osteocalcin combines with calcium in order to strengthen your bones. According to "Nutrition and You" by Joan Salge Blake, low intake of vitamin K has been linked with the development of osteoporosis.
In order to help bones grow properly, children between 9 and 13 require 60 mcg of vitamin K per day and teenagers between 9 and 18 should consume 75 mg daily. Adult men aged 19 and older should consume 120 mcg of vitamin K daily and adult women of the same age should consume 90 mcg of vitamin K per day. The best dietary sources of vitamin K are green vegetables, such as asparagus, spinach, broccoli, salad greens, Brussels sprouts and cabbage. Margarine and vegetable oil are also good sources of vitamin K.
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