A Chiropractic Perspective On The Importance Of Bone Health As We Age
As we age, our bone metabolism slows down and our healing capacity diminishes. When we are young, your body makes new bone faster than it breaks down old bone and your bone mass increases. Most people reach their peak bone mass in their mid 20s to mid 30s. The higher your peak bone mass, the more bone you have to sustain bone health throughout the rest of your life.
There is constant remodeling, build up and breakdown.
As we age the risk of osteoporosis increases. Your bones become weak and brittle and are easily broken because during the osteoporosis process the body’s creation of new bone can no longer keep up with the breakdown of old bone. Women near the age of menopause are particularly vulnerable to bone loss. During this time women may go through a rapid phase of bone loss losing up to 2% of bone mass each year during that time. Regular chiropractic care can prevent osteoporosis by keeping the spine and muscles in good shape, and alignment. Your chiropractor can make recommendations for diet, exercise, and lifestyle to prevent the onset of osteoporosis. A combination of weight-bearing exercise and strength training exercise is always best. Weight-bearing exercises such as walking jogging running stair climbing and skipping rope have a positive effect on the entire skeleton but particularly benefit the bones in your legs hips and lower spine.
Be sure to consult your chiropractor with respect to your dietary habits and whether or not supplementation may be necessary. The average adult needs between 1000 and 1200 mg of calcium per day. Most supplements bought in health food stores are in a 2 to 1 ratio of calcium to magnesium. Be sure and buy a quality supplement. Vitamin D is also necessary for the absorption of calcium. Although we absorb vitamin D from sun exposure, we live in the northern hemisphere and many of the months of the calendar year don’t have sufficient sun exposure for that. Vitamin D production even varies with respect to the angle of the sun and the time of day The recommended daily allowance for vitamin D is 600 international units per day. However it’s not uncommon for people to take 1000 international units per day. Check with your chiropractor to understand the upper limits of vitamin D intake. Many of the health professionals at Pickering Village chiropractic and massage, are well-versed in the importance of ongoing care of bone health, exercise, nutrition and diet and maintenance of your musculoskeletal structures.
Feel free to book a consultation to discuss your specific needs.