Beyond eating a balanced diet, some individual nutrients are particularly important for bone health.<\/p>\n
Calcium<\/p>\n
Calcium is the most abundant mineral in the body, and most of it is stored in your bones and teeth. It \u201chelps keep our bones sturdy and healthy\u201d, Prather said.<\/p>\n
Adequate calcium intake is important for building and maintaining bone mass, but many adults don\u2019t get enough. \u201cIf you don\u2019t take in enough calcium, your body will use the calcium in your bones for its other needs\u201d, like maintaining a normal heartbeat and contracting muscles, Castro said.<\/p>\n
Most adults should aim for 1000 milligrams of calcium per day. Some people need a bit more. Women between the ages of 51 and 70 and all adults who are older than 70 should consume 1200mg per day.<\/p>\n
Vitamin D<\/p>\n
Vitamin D doesn\u2019t get as much attention as calcium, but it plays a key role in bone health, helping your body absorb calcium in the gut. \u201cYou could consume all the calcium in the world that you want, and unless vitamin D is taken alongside with it, it\u2019s not going to do you any good,\u201d Castro said.<\/p>\n
Vitamin D also supports bone growth, strengthening and remodelling, and helps protect against osteoporosis.<\/p>\n
Adults under the age of 70 need around 600 international units (IU) of vitamin D each day, and those older than 70 need 800 IU. Vitamin D-rich foods like fatty fish, egg yolks and fortified milk and orange juice can help you meet some of your needs, as can sun exposure. Your doctor may also recommend a vitamin D supplement if your levels are low.<\/p>\n
Protein<\/p>\n
Protein helps build and maintain bones and muscles. You\u2019ll want to consume about 1 to 1.2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight each day. This is extremely important for older adults, because an inadequate amount of dietary protein is associated with muscle weakness and age-related muscle loss called sarcopenia, \u201cwhich both can increase the risk of falling and fracturing bones\u201d, said Joan Salge Blake, a registered dietitian and clinical professor of nutrition at Boston University.<\/p>\n
Foods to eat for bone health<\/p>\n
\u201cSalmon is a good source of not only calcium, but vitamin D and protein,\u201d says Joan Salge Blake, a registered dietitian and professor of nutrition. \u201cThat\u2019s the trifecta for bone health.\u201d Photo \/ David Malosh, The New York Times<\/p>\n
Yoghurt<\/p>\n
Research has linked fermented dairy products such as yoghurt with a lower risk of fracture. One 1\/2-cup serving of plain, non-fat Greek yoghurt has about 173mg of calcium and 16g of protein. Some yoghurt is also fortified with vitamin D.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you look at the nutrition facts panel, you may see anywhere from 10 to 25% of the daily value of vitamin D per serving,\u201d said registered dietitian Kelly Jones. \u201cOthers may not be fortified, in which case you may see 0% daily value.\u201d<\/p>\n
On a food\u2019s nutrition facts label, the per cent daily value lets you know how much each nutrient in one serving contributes toward the recommended daily diet for an average adult who is eating 2000 calories per day. It\u2019s meant to be a quick reference point: 5% daily value or less of a nutrient per serving is considered low, while 20% or more is considered high.<\/p>\n
For an easy breakfast, whip up a green smoothie with yoghurt, pear and ginger or a matcha yoghurt smoothie. In search of a nutritious dessert? Pull together some frozen yoghurt bark with peaches and cherries.<\/p>\n
Salmon<\/p>\n
\u201cSalmon is a good source of not only calcium, but vitamin D and protein,\u201d Blake said. \u201cThat\u2019s the trifecta for bone health.\u201d <\/p>\n
A 4-ounce (113g) serving of wild sockeye salmon contains 10mg of calcium, 500 IU of vitamin D (more than 100% of your daily needs), and 24g of protein.<\/p>\n
As an added bonus, salmon has been linked with better heart, brain and eye health. Canned salmon is also an easy choice that doesn\u2019t require much prep work \u201cand can be a fabulous protein source at lunch\u201d, Blake said.<\/p>\n
Soy<\/p>\n
\u201cSoy products, especially calcium-fortified soy milk and tofu, are great alternatives for, or complements to, dairy,\u201d Jones said. <\/p>\n
In a cup of fortified soy milk, you\u2019ll get 200 to 400mg of calcium, varied amounts of vitamin D and about 7 to 9g of protein (depending on the brand).<\/p>\n
Soy milk works well in many scenarios where you would otherwise use another type of milk. Try it in your coffee, overnight oats, smoothies, cereal, soups or French toast.<\/p>\n
Edamame \u2013 with 98mg of calcium and 19g of protein per cup \u2013 is another good option, as is tofu, which is also high in protein and often contains added calcium.<\/p>\n
Toss some edamame into your soups and salads for an added nutrient boost. <\/p>\n
Broccoli<\/p>\n
\u201cA cup of cooked broccoli will serve up about 60 milligrams of calcium,\u201d Blake said. It also contains vitamin K, which supports blood clotting, helps strengthen bones and may protect against osteoporosis.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrozen broccoli, which is already cleaned and prepped, is a wonderful way to easily add broccoli to a meal and in soups,\u201d Blake said.<\/p>\n
For a flavourful dinner, pull together some fried rice with broccoli and mustard greens. And you can never go wrong with a broccoli quiche.<\/p>\n
Kale<\/p>\n
\u201cA cup of cooked kale will provide 177 milligrams of calcium, which is over 10% of the daily value recommended for this mineral,\u201d Blake said.<\/p>\n
Leafy green vegetables like kale are also a good source of vitamin K. Some of them \u2013 like spinach and Swiss chard \u2013 are high in oxalates, a type of plant compound that binds with calcium in the gut and prevents absorption, Castro said. However, other greens like kale and bok choy are low in oxalates, \u201cso you have to be cognisant of which ones are going to be better to consume\u201d, Castro added.<\/p>\n
Kale pesto is a great option to have on hand for everything from grain bowls to toasts to easy pasta dishes.<\/p>\n
Incorporating these foods, and others that are rich in bone-supporting nutrients, into your regular rotation is one of the best things you can do for your body as you age.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s interesting about our bone is that we\u2019re constantly building it and then breaking it down and building it and breaking it down \u2013 and what keeps it going is that nutrition,\u201d Castro said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u201cYou aren\u2019t really going to be able to build it past 30, usually, but you can preserve what\u2019s…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":439991,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[7127,14144,26985,5818,15124,1342,6208,134,5838,26098,6036,103476,27612,5971,111,139,9452,69,9979,18835,1886,61,6923],"class_list":["post-439990","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","tag-age","tag-bone","tag-bones","tag-eating","tag-fight","tag-five","tag-foods","tag-health","tag-help","tag-heres","tag-know","tag-maintain","tag-mass","tag-need","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nutrients","tag-nz","tag-right","tag-strong","tag-support","tag-to","tag-what"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/439990","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=439990"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/439990\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/439991"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=439990"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=439990"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=439990"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}