Bones are the base of a strong body. If you want to build your body, then bones are the area where you need to take care of. Weaker bones can give you several problems including osteoporosis which means fracturing of bones due to the weak bone structure. During childhood and adolescent days, the body makes the bone tissue faster than it loses it. By the time people reach at 18 to 20 years, they develop all the bones for the lifetime. 30 is the age when the bone making process reaches the peak point. From this time onwards, the process of bone making becomes slow down and the bone loss process starts on.
It is a natural process, once you lose a bone you cannot get it back. But you can definitely make your bones stronger in order to reduce the rate of bone loss. Some factors governing the bone functions are genetic while some other factors like sex, age, and race determines the 50% to 90% composition of bones. You need to protect your bones and to reduce the occurrence of osteoporosis in later life.
Nutrition
The three main components for stronger bones are -calcium, protein, and vitamin D. Collagen is the most important protein in humans, found mostly in fleshes and connective tissues which accounts for up to 30% of the total protein count. Collagen is made up of calcium and other minerals. Vitamin D is important because it helps our body to absorb calcium which can make strong bones. Research says, an adult should get vitamin D in between 600 and 800 (IUs) every day, and between 1,000 and 1,300 milligrams (mg) of calcium per day. A higher amount of it needed especially for those postmenopausal women, teenage girls, and pregnant women or anyone who is lactating.
These sections of people need more calcium to develop strong built. There are many ways to get abundant calcium in your diet. A daily intake of dairy products like milk, yogurt, and cheese is necessary as they contain lots of calcium and protein. Apart from dairy products, you can get it with vegetables and fruits like Beans and legumes, broccoli, juices, cereals, oatmeal, almonds. Eggs, Solomon fish etc. are a great source of protein. Another way to get vitamin D is through proper sunlight. A daily exposure to sunlight is required to stay healthy.
Exercise
It is just another great way to build strong bone muscles. A lack of exercise can cause a huge impact on the skeletal structure of our body. Research says people who are bed ridden or does not exercise tend to lose about 10% of their bone density. It happens in some important areas of the skeleton. It takes longer time to get recovered from it. Immobility can cause the bones to become weak. Walking is a great blessing for people having osteoporosis. People who walk regularly for at least 4 hours per week have less chance of developing hip fracture. Weight lifting exercises like walking, jogging etc contribute significantly in the bone building process.
Say no to smoking
Smokers are at a great risk of developing fractures. Even passive smoking is also bad for bone health; it involves the risk of having low bone mass when growing as an adult.
