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To care for your bones, concentrate on the following:
Eat a balanced diet rich in calcium and vitamin D. Calcium is high in dairy products such as lowfat milk and yogurt. You can also choose orange juice or soy milk (fortified with calcium), beans and leafy green vegetables to ensure you take in enough calcium. If you don't think you do this and don't think you can, try the new Viactiv brand of chewable tablets available at the drugstore. They contain 500 mg of absorbable calcium and taste like fudge! (Well, almost like fudge.) To absorb the calcium you eat, your body needs Vitamin D. Milk has vitamin D but you also have some stored in your body. To activate the Vitamin D in your body, just spend about 10 minutes a day outside a few days during the week when the sun is shining.
Participate in weight-bearing exercise such as walking or weight training. Exercise doesn't have to be painful or take a whole day to do it! While some people enjoy spending hours working out (yes, some people enjoy it) you only need about 20 minutes most days of the week of walking or weight training to stimulate your bones to be stronger. To begin a weight training program, talk to us (debra@sensiblenutrition.com) about putting together a short weight lifting routine that you can do at home in 20 minutes. Another easy exercise option... just put on your walkman and start walking... 10 minutes away from your home or office and 10 minutes back.
FYI: Many of our nutritionists also have degrees in exercise physiology and are certified personal trainers.
Live a healthy life with no smoking or excessive alcohol use. More on this tip next week.
Talk to your doctor about bone density testing. More on this tip next week. For more information, please visit the National Osteoporosis Foundation's website at www.nof.org or contact your physician or a nutritionist in your area.
Eat a balanced diet rich in calcium and vitamin D. Calcium is high in dairy products such as lowfat milk and yogurt. You can also choose orange juice or soy milk (fortified with calcium), beans and leafy green vegetables to ensure you take in enough calcium. If you don't think you do this and don't think you can, try the new Viactiv brand of chewable tablets available at the drugstore. They contain 500 mg of absorbable calcium and taste like fudge! (Well, almost like fudge.) To absorb the calcium you eat, your body needs Vitamin D. Milk has vitamin D but you also have some stored in your body. To activate the Vitamin D in your body, just spend about 10 minutes a day outside a few days during the week when the sun is shining.
Participate in weight-bearing exercise such as walking or weight training. Exercise doesn't have to be painful or take a whole day to do it! While some people enjoy spending hours working out (yes, some people enjoy it) you only need about 20 minutes most days of the week of walking or weight training to stimulate your bones to be stronger. To begin a weight training program, talk to us (debra@sensiblenutrition.com) about putting together a short weight lifting routine that you can do at home in 20 minutes. Another easy exercise option... just put on your walkman and start walking... 10 minutes away from your home or office and 10 minutes back.
FYI: Many of our nutritionists also have degrees in exercise physiology and are certified personal trainers.
Live a healthy life with no smoking or excessive alcohol use. More on this tip next week.
Talk to your doctor about bone density testing. More on this tip next week. For more information, please visit the National Osteoporosis Foundation's website at www.nof.org or contact your physician or a nutritionist in your area.