When I was a child in three sisters canmore homes, my mother told me it’s important to get adequate vitamin D and calcium so I grow tall! She was right– but it’s also equally important to get ample calcium as adults so we don’t lose bone mass. As we age our body loses its ability to regenerate bones, and certain categories of people are more prone to bone loss; women who are pregnant, breastfeeding, or going through menopause.
Here are top tips to increase bone mass:
Eat a Calcium-rich diet: The easiest and most obvious way to increase calcium (and make sure you absorb it) is to eat a calcium rich diet. You can get calcium from fruits, leafy dark green veggies (such as spinach), diary products (yogurt, cheese, and milk), and from fish with soft bones (like salmon)
Calcium supplements: If you find it difficult to eat your calcium, it’s important to take supplements that can give your bones what they need. Some supplements are are over the counter, others you can buy in your local health food store. I recommend the supplement AlgaeCal– it can actually reverse the signs of degenerated bones. Exercise like swimming and running actually remove your body’s weight from the bones—so actually weakens them. That’s why it’s super important to take your supplements. Children should take 1,000 milligrams daily, while woman over 51 should take 1,200 milligrams daily.
Vitamin D: is a huge advocate of increasing bone strength and calcium absorption. Vitamin D is a nutrient that helps our body use phosphorous and calcium to build our bones, and teeth– and maintain them. We can get lots of healthy Vitamin D from the sun, but in winter months it’s important to find other way to supplement, like drinking goat’s milk, or orange juice fortified with Vitamin D. There’s also Vitamin D found in egg yolks and fatty fish.
