{"id":913,"date":"2014-03-25T08:00:03","date_gmt":"2014-03-25T12:00:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.medicalalertadvice.com\/?p=913"},"modified":"2018-01-10T16:31:32","modified_gmt":"2018-01-10T21:31:32","slug":"keeping-your-bones-strong","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.medicalalertadvice.com\/articles\/keeping-your-bones-strong\/","title":{"rendered":"Keeping Your Bones Strong"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"attachment_908\" style=\"width: 210px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-908\" class=\"wp-image-908 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/www.medicalalertadvice.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/elderly-woman-drinking-milk-for-calcium-200x300.jpg\" alt=\"strengthen bones to help prevent accidents &amp; osteoporosis\" width=\"200\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.medicalalertadvice.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/elderly-woman-drinking-milk-for-calcium-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.medicalalertadvice.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/elderly-woman-drinking-milk-for-calcium.jpg 283w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-908\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Strong bones can help prevent falls and further injuries &#8211; but knowing that someone is there to help is encouraging.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>More than ten million Americans suffer from osteoporosis, a disease which weakens the bones and causes them to break easily.\u00a0 While it can occur in anyone, it is most prevalent in Caucasian and Asian females.\u00a0 Because your bones gradually lose strength as you age, the risk of being diagnosed with the disease increases as you get older.<!--more--><\/p>\n<p>Additional risk factors include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>While all menopause accelerates bone loss for a period of years, early menopause is particularly impactful<\/li>\n<li>A family history of the disease<\/li>\n<li>Having suffered from a broken bone as an adult<\/li>\n<li>A life-long lack of calcium in your diet<\/li>\n<li>Enduring a lengthy period of bed rest at some point in your life<\/li>\n<li>A small body frame<\/li>\n<li>Long term use of certain <a href=\"http:\/\/nof.org\/articles\/6\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">medicines<\/a>, such as prescribed steroids<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Fortunately, there are some things you can do today to increase your bone strength and potentially prevent osteoporosis from happening to you.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><b>Exercise<\/b>&#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.medicalalertadvice.com\/articles\/top-low-impact-exercises-for-older-adults\/\" rel=\"noopener\">Low impact exercises for seniors<\/a> such as\u00a0 light physical activity, particularly weight-bearing exercises, will help keep your bones strong.\u00a0 Consider weight bearing aerobic activity such as playing tennis, dancing, walking, or swimming three to four times per week.\u00a0 Exercises designed for strengthening and balance will help as well.\u00a0 Be sure to talk with your doctor before starting any exercise routine.<\/li>\n<li><b>Lifestyle Changes<\/b>&#8211; It is recommended that you stop smoking, as tobacco use increases your chances of getting osteoporosis.\u00a0 Alcohol should only be used in moderation.\u00a0 Excessive alcohol use can put you off balance, increasing your risk of falling and breaking a bone.<\/li>\n<li><b>Speak with Your Physician<\/b>&#8211; If you are taking any medicines that can weaken your bones, it is a good idea to talk to your physician about potential impacts and alternatives.\u00a0 Your doctor can also order a bone density test if you are concerned about bone loss.<\/li>\n<li><b>Calcium<\/b>&#8211; One of the best things you can do throughout your life to avoid osteoporosis is to make sure you have enough calcium in your diet.\u00a0 Women over 50 need 1200 milligrams of calcium per day.\u00a0 From ages 51-70, men need 1000 milligrams, and they need 1200 milligrams after 70.\u00a0 It&#8217;s best to eat calcium rich foods such a salmon and dark green leafy vegetables.\u00a0 If you check the supermarket, you will also find products, such as orange juice, that have been fortified with calcium.\u00a0 However, your doctor may also recommend you take a calcium supplement.<\/li>\n<li><b>Vitamin D<\/b>&#8211; Your body needs vitamin D to absorb calcium.\u00a0 If you are ages 51-70, you need 600 IUof Vitamin D per day, and you need 800 IU if you are over age 70.\u00a0 Good sources for Vitamin D include eggs, fatty fish, and milk that has been Vitamin D fortified.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>More than ten million Americans suffer from osteoporosis, a disease which weakens the bones and causes them to break easily.\u00a0 While it can occur in anyone, it is most prevalent in Caucasian and Asian females.\u00a0 Because your bones gradually lose strength as you age, the risk of being diagnosed with the disease increases as you [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":19,"featured_media":908,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"no","footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[118,19,121],"acf":[],"modified_by":"ArticlesTips","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.medicalalertadvice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/913"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.medicalalertadvice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.medicalalertadvice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.medicalalertadvice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/19"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.medicalalertadvice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=913"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.medicalalertadvice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/913\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3785,"href":"https:\/\/www.medicalalertadvice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/913\/revisions\/3785"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.medicalalertadvice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/908"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.medicalalertadvice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=913"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.medicalalertadvice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=913"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.medicalalertadvice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=913"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}