A balanced, healthy diet can help you build strong bones from a young age and maintain them throughout your life. It is important to get enough calcium to maintain bone health and also vitamin D to aid in the absorption of calcium in the body. Lack of good bone health can cause problems such as rickets in children and osteoporosis in adults, while also increasing the risk of bone fractures due to falls in later life.
Follow a balanced diet should provide all the nutrients needed to maintain bone health. However, a good diet is just one key factor in bone health, which also includes regular exercise and prevention of risk factors for osteoporosis.
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Bone health and calcium, all the healthy foods for bones
Adults need, at least, 700 mg of calcium per day to have strong, healthy bones. It is important to follow a varied and balanced diet to obtain all the calcium our body needs. Among the main sources of calcium we certainly find milk, cheese and other dairy products. Be sure to choose low-fat dairy products to reduce your saturated fat intake. Leafy green vegetables such as broccoli, cabbage and okra are also excellent. Spinach, on the other hand, contains oxalate, a substance capable of reducing the absorption of calcium.
Soybeans and tofu are also good sources of calcium for people following a vegetarian or vegan diet. Also don’t forget peanuts, almonds, walnuts and hazelnuts, all calcium-rich foods that can be added to your diet as a healthy snack. Fish is also an excellent source of calcium, sardines and herring in particular are rich in this important substance which protects our bones.
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Not just calcium, the importance of vitamin D
Vitamin D is essential for the proper functioning of your body in many ways. One of its main tasks is to keep bones strong by facilitating the absorption of calcium and phosphorus, minerals essential for bone health. Additionally, muscles depend on vitamin D to move properly, while nerves need it to transmit messages throughout the body. Essentially, vitamin D plays a crucial role in maintaining the overall health and well-being of your body.
Adults may find it difficult to get enough vitamin D from their diet, so it is advisable to obtain this vitamin primarily from sun exposure. During the summer months, you can produce sufficient vitamin D by engaging in short periods of sun exposure without sunscreen. However, during the autumn and winter months, when sun exposure is limited, it is recommended to take vitamin D supplements. For infants and children, it is advisable to consult your pediatrician to determine the correct intake of vitamins.
The importance of a healthy and balanced diet for the health of menopausal women
After menopause, when the ovaries produce less estrogen or stop altogether, women lose bone more rapidly. Estrogen has a protective effect on bones, so this decrease can increase the risk of osteoporosis and fractures. There are no specific recommendations for calcium or vitamin D intake during menopause. However, a healthy, balanced diet that includes sources of calcium, such as dairy products, fish and leafy green vegetables, can help maintain bone health.
It is also important to receive sufficient exposure to sunlight during the summer for vitamin D production, or consider taking vitamin D supplements. These practices can help slow the rate of bone loss and maintain bone health during menopause.