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How to Prevent Osteoporosis Naturally

Article Written by Dr. Alan Smith - Naturopathic Doctor, Osteopath and Yoga Teacher.

Doctor Klapper, 1 don't know what to do. I'm only 58 but I feel like I'm 88. I can hardly move. 1 ache all the time and it's hard to get out of a chair. But the reason I'm here is that 1 saw a snapshot of myself the other day and I have began to bend over like an old woman. I know I haven't taken great care of myself but I'm not that old. I can't believe I'd be living on coffee and pain killers at my age........

Hi Doctor Klapper, I can't believe it's time for the yearly check-up again. I'm on the go so much I hardly notice the months passing by. Sam and 1 went on a camping trip for our 30th anniversary and now I've got my 3 grandchildren staying with me while their parents take a vacation. They sure have energy at that age. I could probably skip my exercise class while their here. But I am having so much fun with the group that I will miss them.......

These two women are about the same age, their are in totally different life situations. The first is realising the effect of a life style that has done her body a great deal of harm. She told me she had cut back on red meat but still ate large quantities of chicken and fish and she couldn't get through the day without several cups of coffee and a couple of drink before dinner.

The second is reaping the rewards of a life lived carefully with an eye towards her later years. During this segment we are going to talk about some important principles behind creating a strong skeleton in a body which reaches the later part of life without the problems associated with a degenerative bone condition call osteoporosis.

The word literary translates into porous bones. 'Osteo' means bone, poroses means the condition of being porous. To understand Osteoporosis you need to know first how bones are put together and then what makes them fall apart. Bones are developed out of fibres of strong flexible protein called collagen. Collagen is made of the amino acids found in the protein of the foods we eat. Then the body hardens the collagen by depositing the mineral calcium into the protein framework. Putting it as simply as possible:- bone is calcified collagen. As long as the calcium stays in the bone the bone stays strong.

If children are going to calcify strong bones, first they have to spend their childhood years actively playing and running and using their bones. Second they have to have a diet that supplies at least 300ml of calcium each day. Luckily every diet on earth that is capable of supporting life, supplies that much calcium. And finally, they have to have at least 15 minutes of sunshine fall on their skin each day. This allows them to create enough vitamin D in their skin which permits absorption of dietary calcium from their intestines into their blood stream.

You need to use your bones actively as part of a physically active lifestyle so you retain the calcium. If you can do this and avoid any of the factors that causes calcium to leak out of the bones your skeleton should stay strong throughout your life. However, if the calcium leaves the bone for any reason, the bone is weakened. A steady drain of calcium out of the bones is the first step leading to Osteoporosis because the loss of calcium is the beginning of the destruction of the bones collagen framework.

The resulting thinning of the bones permits it to snap easily under stress, one of the major symptoms of Osteoporosis. When the collagen framework begins to dissolve the bones weaken to the point that it can fracture, with just a small pressure, a cough or an affectionate hug is enough to snap a rib. You can get a compression fracture in which a vertebra in the spine collapses, just from riding in a car over a bumpy road. Often we hear that a senior person fell and broke her hip. Bones effected by Osteoporosis are that fragile.

If you could assist in the operating room as an Orthopaedic surgeon repairs a fracture the true nature of porous bones would become very clear to you. As the surgeon uses the clamps and other instruments the osteoporotic bones split or break or crumble beneath his hand, that's how brittle the bones become. While each of us wants to maintain sturdy bones throughout our lives osteoporosis is almost epidemic.

At least 50 to 20 million Americans have the condition. 35 to 40% of women over age 65 have had a bone fracture from Osteoporosis. Further more; 1.3 million people each year fracture bones that are found to be osteoporotic. The hip fractures we mentioned are especially lethal. There are 190 thousand hip fractures reported each year. 80% of them impost menopausal women. Each year 15 thousand women die from these fractures usually as a result of a pneumonia or infections of the unitary tract that frequently follows surgery and immobilisation.

There are two major reasons why women are at higher risk than men. First a woman's bone density is less than that of a man. So there is less bone calcium to begin with and second, a drop in oestrogen levels which a women experiences at menopause, contributes to further loss of calcium through the urine.

In Western societies women eat lots of chicken and fish and other concentrated protein as well as drinking cola drinks, smoking cigarettes and being generally inactive. These are all factors that make the body lose calcium through the urine. One idea I'd like to dispel right now is that Osteoporosis is a natural part of ageing. Our heart, brain and muscles are designed to last well beyond one hundred years. There is no reason our bones should wear out and fall apart at age 60. Osteoporosis isn't a design defect in women. It is a disease that can be prevented by understanding what causes calcium to leach out of our bones and can be alleviated by knowing some common sense strategies for strengthening your bones.

Now, the truth is after you reach age 35 you begin to lose a little bit of calcium out of your bones every day. Your body loses about 150mg a day of calcium through perspiration and the urine. But almost all of that calcium loss is replaced through absorbing the calcium in our diet. So the loss of calcium from the body should be very slow and not enough to sufficiently weaken your bone strength. You must also understand that osteoporosis is not a disease of calcium deficiency. That is, not eating enough calcium in our diet.

Osteoporosis is a disease of accelerated calcium loss from the bones. That's worth repeating. osteoporosis is not a disease of calcium deficiency. It doesn't indicate that you aren't getting enough calcium from dairy products or from calcium supplements. You can easily meet your body's need for calcium and retain the calcium in your bones for your entire life by using a naturally occurring calcium in a well balanced nutrition for the 90Js style diet.

You need calcium f or muscle contraction, blood clotting and other vital chemical reactions. You actually require about 200 to 300mg a day to make up for what your body loses through excretion. That much is amply available in all the green plants, nuts, seeds, grains, fruits and vegetables in a cholesterol free health supporting nutritional plan.

As I've said before, "cows don't get the calcium in their milk from drinking milk, they get it from eating grains and green plants and I think there is a message in that for all of us."

Osteoporosis isn't seen anywhere near as often in developing nations as it is in the Industrialised Countries. It's most rampant in Countries that eat the most animal protein, namely the United States, Europe, Scandinavia and New Zealand. For people who live in Countries where they eat mostly grains and vegetables while staying active the disease really isn't even a serious concern.

Those who escape osteoporosis may be blessed with good genes, but more likely, they instinctively following the principles of creating and maintaining strong bones. That means they eat calcium rich foods. They avoid substances that drain calcium from the bones and they exercise.

Lets look at these three principals one at a time:

THE FIRST PRINCIPAL:- is to build strong bones during childhood and adolescence, by eating calcium rich food and living physically active lives, so that calcium is deposited densely into the bones.

THE SECOND PRINCIPAL: - is to avoid calcium feeds. There are several reasons that calcium tours out of your bones. The major calcium feed is concentrated proteins from meats and diary products. Another is caffeine in coffee, tea and cola drinks and still another is salt, and finally refined sugars, alcohol and tobacco smoke also contribute to calcium loss.

In the case of protein, its the sulphur atom in some of the amino acids which make up the protein that turns to acid in the body. This acid in the blood flows through the bones and dissolves the calcium out of the bones. The calcium is then excreted through the kidneys. Animal proteins have three times the sulphur load of plant proteins. However beans, peas, and other legumes have some concentrated protein that can also result in calcium leaching so it's wise not to have more than one cup a day of these foods.

Changing over to the nutrition for the 90's plan which provides you with a much more moderate protein diet is the most crucial step you can take to prevent calcium leaching out of your bones. It's more effective than all the dairy products or calcium supplements you can consume, because increasing your intake of calcium won't compensate for the calcium losing affect of concentrated protein in the diet.

Caffeine is a calcium feed, because it increases calcium lost through urination. Colder drinks have the added danger of phosphoric acid which also promotes calcium loss through the urine. Salt, sugar, alcohol and tobacco smoke are also taboo, if you want to keep your bones strong, because they all foster calcium loss through the kidneys.

THE THIRD PRINCIPAL:- is to keep bones strong, you need to use them, bones are alive, and the more you use them the stronger they become. Bones have a very rich blood supply, and their own biologically generated electrical fields in the bones shaft. For instance, the act of walking sends electrical energy pulsing up and down the long bones in your legs and this electrical energy is one of the main forces that pumps calcium out of the blood and holds it in your bones. Walking is essential to keep calcium in your leg bones, and using your arm muscles against resistance is crucial for keeping your bones in your upper body strong.

Astronauts loss sufficient amounts of bone calcium during their days or weeks of being weightless in space. Fortunately, they regain it quickly when they resume walking on earth. A walking programme has been shown to increase the bone density in post menopausal women with Osteoporosis. The women in Asian countries who don't get the disease are active women, who do physical labour and remain physically active all their lives.

This is a key for western women to appreciate and to act on.

One other topic 1 want to address here is women and Oestrogens. Now, there is no question that oestrogens retard the loss of calcium from the bones. But, women who take these hormones after menopause to protect their bones are raising the risk of other serious diseases like uridine cancer, blood clots in the legs and gall stones. A women who stays physically active with frequent walking and who eats a low protein diet, and avoids the other calcium feeds, shouldn't need oestrogen tablets to avoid Osteoporosis.

I recommend oestrogen replacement therapy only for women who have prematurely had their ovaries removed during a hysterectomy. Then, 1 would like to see the hormones tapered off after age 46 or so, the age of natural menopause. If extra oestrogen is required my patients find that a oestrogens cream applied sparingly to the vagina tissue a few times a week supplies enough hormones to keep the vagina walls health and prevent dryness. At the same time the tiny amounts of oestrogen that are absorbed into the blood stream do help keep the bones strong and other tissues healthy.

Another question I am often asked about concerns calcium supplements. You can do this be consuming extra helpings of calcium in rich greens, vegetable juices, or if need be, supplement tablets.

The best way to supplement with calcium is from Holistic and highly absorbable sources such as:

MACA, which is rich in natural calcium and other minerals and trace elements. It has the perfect calcium and phosporous balance, and or Hawaiian Spirulina Pacifica.

Above all, avoid those made from dolomite or from oyster shell, because they can be contaminated with lead or arsenic; and which are poorly absorbed and can be the cause of calcium deposits to settle in joints. Besides, taking isolated calcium in high amounts can also possibly lead to painful kidney stones. So if you do insist on taking these isolated forms (which we do not recommend) do keep their intake to 1000mg or less each day.

To sum up: the recipe for developing osteoporosis is simple - sit home day after day, eat lots of chicken and fish, and lots of low fat dairy products with your concentrated protein. Never exercise and drink lots of caffeine, cold drinks and alcohol while pumping on cigarettes.

To out-smart the disease, be an active person who eats a low protein, plant based calcium rich diet. Exercise for at least 30 minutes, three times a week and avoid all the other calcium feeds. And, if you already have osteoporosis, take heart, several studies including that by Dr Alowere in the journal of the American Geriatric Society, indicates that you can strengthen your bones even after they become thin. A daily walking programme along with the changes in diet and life style we have outlined here, will help you to get your bones strong and keep then that way. it's up to you!

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