Newspaper Page Text
♦ WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 1, 2006
6C
Support your bones with healthy habits
By Dixie Farley
FDA Consumer writer
Unearthed skeletons from
ancient times testify to the
durability of bone long after
other bodily tissue turns
to dust. Living bone in the
body, however, can lose min
eral and fracture easily if
neglected-a disorder called
osteoporosis, or porous
bones. One in two women
and one in eight men over 50
suffer such fractures, includ
ing sometimes life-threaten
ing hip fractures.
But during your preteen
and teenage years, you can
reduce your risk of fractured
bones later in life with cal
cium-rich foods and physical
activity.
Bone behavior
Your body’s 206 living
bones continually undergo a
buildup, breakdown process
called remodeling.
The body starts to form
most of its bone mass before
puberty, the beginning of
sexual development, build
ing 75 to 85 percent of the
skeleton during adolescence.
Women reach their peak
bone mass by around age 25
to 30, while men build bone
until about age 30 to 35. The
amount of peak bone mass
you reach depends largely
on your genes. Then gradu
ally, with age, the break
down outpaces the buildup,
and in late middle age bone
density lessens when needed
calcium is withdrawn from
bone for such tasks as blood
clotting and muscle contrac
tions, including beating by
the heart.
“You can’t do anything
about the genesyou’re dealt,’’
says Mona Calvo, Ph.D., a
calcium expert for the Food
and Drug Administration.
“As a teenager, though, you
can make the most of things
you do control that can build
your bones and help reduce
the risk of fractures when
MEAT
From page iC
juice and broth; replace
chicken.
Bring to simmer over high
heat; reduce to low and let
stew for 15 minutes.
While stew is simmering,
pee! pearl onions and pota
toes. Cut potatoes into 1-
inch chunks and cut corn
into 2-inch chunks; slice
squash. Stir onions, pota
toes, corn, squash and sage
into stew; cook for 15 more
minutes.
Season with salt and
remaining pepper; serve
immediately in wide, shal
low bowls.
Smoky sausage
and beans on rice
1 package (14 ounces)
smoked turkey sausage, cut
into 1/4-inch slices
2 cups sliced red bell pep
pers
2 cups thinly sliced onions
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 tablespoon Italian sea
soning
1/4 teaspoon dried red pep
per flakes
1 tablespoon olive oil
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you are older.”
Supporting the skeleton
with healthful habits now so
it can support you later in
life is especially important if
you have an increased risk
of osteoporosis-for example,
if you’re female or have a
thin, small-boned frame.
These habits are proper diet,
exercise, and avoiding bone
risks-lifestyle choices that
are bad for bone, like smok
ing.
Eat your way to strong
bones
The main mineral in bones
is calcium, one of whose
functions is to add strength
and stiffness to bones, which
they need to support the
body. To lengthen long bones
during growth, the body
builds a scaffold of protein
and fills this in with cal
cium-rich mineral. From the
time you’re 11 until you’re
24, you need about 1,200
milligrams (mg) of calcium
each day.
Adolescent bodies are tai
lor-made to “bone up” on
calcium. Calvo says that
with the start of puberty,
“your body is at a higher
capacity to absorb and retain
calcium.” Bone also needs
vitamin D, to move calcium
from the intestine to the
bloodstream and into bone.
You can get vitamin D from
short, normal day-to-day
exposure of your arms and
legs to sun and from foods
fortified with the vitamin.
Also needed are vitamin A,
vitamin C, magnesium and
zinc, as well as protein for
the growing bone scaffold.
Mother Nature provides
many foods with these nutri
ents. One stands out, howev
er, as “almost a perfect pack
age,” according to Calvo.
“Milk is rich in calcium and
high-quality protein. Nearly
all U.S. milk has vitamins
D and A added. And it has
magnesium and zinc.”
Still, as excellent as milk
4 cups chopped tomatoes
2 cans (15 ounces each)
Black beans
Cooked rice
Cook sausage, bell pep
pers, onions, Italian season
ing, and red pepper flakes
in oil in large skillet until
sausage is browned and veg
etables are tender, 8 to 10
minutes.
Stir in remaining ingredi
ents and cook, covered, over
medium heat until tomatoes
are softened, about 5 min
utes. Serve over rice.
Source: American Dry
Bean Council
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is for bones, it and other
dairy products are not the
only foods that contain cal
cium. All groups in the food
guide pyramid in fact, offer
calcium sources-from the
pyramid’s grain-based foods
that you need the most of,
to the produce and high-pro
tein groups in the middle,
and even to the fats and
sweets “use sparingly" group
at the top. The importance
of choosing calcium sourc
es from the different food
groups is that each group
offers its unique package of
other nutrients as well.
An easy daily plan is to
drink a calcium source at
every meal and eat one cal
cium food as a snack, says
Ruth Welch, a registered
dietitian with FDA.
Get enough weight
bearing exercise
Growing bone is especial
ly sensitive to the impact
of weight and pull of mus
cle during exercise, and
responds by building stron
ger, denser bones. That's
why it’s especially impor
tant when you’re growing a
lot to be physically active on
a regular basis.
And as far as bone is con
cerned, Calvo says impact
activity like jumping up and
down appears to be the best
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root;
Hut the important thing is
t<, get off the cou >h and get
moving at some .Wtivity It
rtally is a matter of T'st it
ntw, or lose it lat* f "
Such activities include
s forts and exerci e. includ
ing football, basketball,
baseball, jogging, dancing,
ji mping rope, inlii e skating,
skateboarding. tricycling,
b illet, hiking, skii g, karate,
swimming, rowing a canoe,
bowling, and wcvjht-trrin
ivg. And when yo r parents
it ake you mow the lawn,
i*.ike leaves,' or rash and
uax the car, the 're doing
'pur muscles am. bones a
ti ivor.
FDA's Welch ac’ds. “Dev
ito-dav activities >hat stan
in the teen years, like walK
big the dog or umng stai«>
instead of elevr ©rs, can
become life-long habits for
healthy bones."
Avoid hone ric.ics
Some habits in the teen
age years csn ste .l calcium
Horn your bones o • increase
’'.he need for it, weakening
I he skeleton for liT>.
Skipping meah is risky
(ir bone. Welch s:« In our
(hrce-meal-a-day society,
skipping a meal miy reduce
by a third your hance of
yetting your 120itDV for
calcium-simply b' eliminut
ing one occasion to eat
Replacing milk with non
dairy drinks like soda pop or
fti'it favored teas or drihks
is another eating habi* that
prevents bones from getting
•he calcium and other nutri
ents they need.
In a survey comparing
1994 daily beverage intakes
with those in the late 1970 s
the US Department of
Agriculture found a » witch
from milk to other drnks
among young people
■ Mill drinkers among
tec lagers dropped fro nr.
three-fourths tc little more
than half.
■ Two to three times
move children and teenag
ers drank non-citrus fruit
juices.
■ Teenage boys nearly
tripled their intake of soft
drinks, three- r ourths ofthem
drinking about 34 ounces;
two-thirds of teenage girls
drank 23 ounces
Alcohol abuse and ciga
rette smoking can hurt
bone. Calvo says “Alcohol
abuse can cause loss of calci
um. nagaesium and zinc in
the urine. Many who abuse
alcohol also have poor diets
and malnourished, weaker
bones." Cigarette smoke is
also toxic to bone and can
influence how n u f, h exercise
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you get because it affects
pair stamina, she says
F.atmg disorders can
weaken bone The repeat
ed vomiting in bulimia and
extreme dieting in the appe
tite disorder anorexia can
upset the body's balance of
calcium nno important hor
mones like bone protect Lx*
estiogcn. decreasing bone
density And extreme exer
cising bv young women with
or without eating disorders
can postpone or stop men
struation. when blood levels
of esi rogen are reduced
Small changes fir big
benefits
As a disorder of 'ging.
osteoporosis n.cv wm far
away for worry when you're
15. But. small ch mges today
for better bones tomorrow
may be more important than
you might guess.
Laura Bacharach. M.D.. of
Stanford University, wrote
in Nutrition & the M D last
year that adolescents who
make “even a 5 percent gain
m bone mass can reduce the
risk of osteoporosis by 40
percent." And this is in ado.-
tion to “immed’ ite benefits
of feeling stronger and me re
fit now with these chang
f s
Soun c I S Food & Drug
AJniinistmtion
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