 Protect Your Bones
You are never too young or too old to protect your bones. Now is the time to take action.
What you should know…
- People used to think that getting osteoporosis was a normal part of aging. As it turns out, osteoporosis is a disease you can do something about. It can be prevented, detected and treated. It’s never too late to take action to protect your bones.
- Bone is living, growing tissue that is both flexible and strong.
- Throughout life, you are constantly losing old bone and forming new bone.
- Osteoporosis happens when you lose too much bone, make too little of it or both.
- Today ten million people (two million men and eight million women) in the US are estimated to have osteoporosis.
- Some medicines and diseases can cause bone loss.
- Women can lose up to 20 percent of their bone density in the five to seven years after menopause.
- Bone loss usually speeds up at midlife in both men and women.
- People with osteoporosis cannot feel their bones getting weaker, and many people do not know they have osteoporosis until they break a bone.
- People with osteoporosis most often break a bone in the hip, spine or wrist, but they can also break other bones.
Source: National Osteoporosis Foundation
What can you do…
- You need to get enough calcium and vitamin D every day to keep your bones healthy. [Find out from Fritzi how much you need of each – calcium and Vitamin D.]
- Eat plenty of fruits and vegetables.
- Stay physically active to keep your bones strong and healthy. You should exercise at least 2 ½ hours every week. That’s 150 minutes, and more is even better.
- Do weight-bearing and muscle strengthening exercises. Don’t want to lift weights? Walking is weight-bearing – so is dancing, various sports like tennis, hiking and skiing. Of course light dumbbells and resistance bands also work.
- Improve your balance through balance training exercises.
- Prevent falls by taking a close look at your home and eliminating potential hazards like rugs.
- Learn posture exercises.
- Have your hearing and vision checked each year.
- Don’t smoke.
- Limit caffeine.
- Talk to your doctor about your bone health. Ask if you need a bone mineral density test.
Source: National Osteoporosis Foundation
25 Calcium-Rich Foods
Item |
Serving Size |
Estimated Calcium (mg) |
Soy milk with added calcium |
8 oz (1 cup) |
80-500 |
Yogurt, low-fat or fat free (plain) |
1 cup (8 oz) |
415 |
Fruit juice with added calcium |
6 oz |
200-345 |
Ricotta cheese, part skim |
4 oz (1/2 cup) |
335 |
Sardines, canned in oil with bones |
3 oz |
325 |
Milk, low-fat or fat-free |
1 cup (8 oz) |
300 |
Swiss cheese |
1 oz |
220-270 |
Ice cream, low-fat or high fat |
1 cup (8 oz) |
140-210 |
Cheddar cheese, shredded |
1 oz |
205 |
Frozen yogurt, vanilla (soft serve) |
1 cup (8 oz) |
205 |
Mozzarella cheese, part skim |
1 oz |
205 |
Tofu prepared with calcium |
4 oz (1/2 cup) |
205 |
Turnip greens, fresh, cooked and drained |
8 oz (1 cup) |
200 |
Cereal with added calcium, without milk |
8 oz (1 cup) |
100-200 |
Salmon, pink, canned with bones |
3 oz |
180 |
American cheese |
1 oz |
175 |
Soybeans, mature, cooked and drained |
8 oz (1 cup) |
175 |
Cottage cheese, 1 % milk fat |
1 cup |
140 |
Shrimp, canned |
3 oz |
125 |
Kale, cooked |
8 oz (1 cup) |
95 |
Bok choy (Chinese cabbage), raw |
8 oz (1 cup) |
75 |
Parmesan cheese, grated |
1 tbsp |
70 |
Broccoli, cooked and drained |
8 oz (1 cup) |
60 |
Dried figs |
2 figs |
55 |
Oranges |
1 whole |
50 |
Source: National Osteoporosis Foundation
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