Gary Ferone is franchise owners at Assisting Hands Home Care. It’s a home health care agency for seniors and the disabled, so they can remain safely and comfortably in their own homes.

1. How to Boost Bone Health Before and After Menopause
Time isn’tyourfriendwhenitcomestobone density.Butnomatterwhat yourage, youcan improve
your bone healthwiththese tips.
Unlike manyotherpartsof your body,yourbonesare alwaysina state of flux,breakingdownold
bone cellsandbuildingnewones.Butthatprocessdoesn’tstayinperfectbalance withoutyourhelp,
explainsorthopedicsurgeonLisaKaye Cannada,MD.Dr. Cannadaisan associate professorof
orthopedictraumatologyatthe SaintLouisUniversitySchool of MedicineinMissouri anda
spokeswomanforthe AmericanAcademyof OrthopaedicSurgeons.
“As youage,the amountof bone turnoverisgreaterthan the amountof new bone production,”
Cannadasays. “Asa result,the strengthof yourbonesdecreases,puttingyouatgreaterriskfor
fractures.”Your bone densitypeaksataboutage 30, and “it's all downhillfromthere,”she adds.
Menopause acceleratesthe loss. Asyouapproachmenopause,yourovariesproduce lessandless
estrogen.Andthe lessestrogenyouproduce,the more yourbone cellsbreakdown.Thisputsyouat
a greaterrisk forosteoporosis,orbone thinning,andalsoforbone fractures.
Accordingto the ArthritisFoundation,womenloseabouthalf of theirtrabecularbone — the spongy
tissue thatfillsyourlongbones — overa lifetime.Womenalsolose 30percentof the densertissue
that coversbones.Mostof the lossoccurs withinthe firstdecade aftermenopause,butbothmen
and womenlose 0.5percentof bone densityeveryyearafterage 50.
But youdon’thave to take thisnewslyingdown.Justthe opposite,infact — youwant to getup, get
moving,andgetwitha plan forkeepingyourbonesasstrongas possible.
BoostBone Health:Your Pre-Menopause Plan
The strongeryour bonesare in yourtwentiesandthirties,the betteroff you’ll be whenyoureach
the age at whichbone densitybeginstodecline.Here’swhatyouneedtodoto improve yourbone
health.
Start young.Make bone healthapriorityat as youngan age as possible,longbefore menopause.
“We are seeingwomen(andmen) intheirthirtieswithproblemswiththeirbonesbecause of
unhealthyhabitstheystartedasteenagers,”Cannadasaid. Throughoutyourlife,make apointof
eatinga well-balanced,healthydietwithlotsof dairy,fish,fruits,andvegetablesandmaintaina
healthyweight.

2. Buildstrongbones.Weight-bearingexercisessuchasweightliftingandactivitiesyoudostanding up
— like walking,running,jogging,dancing,stepaerobics,andtennis — are anexcellentwaytobuild
bone density.A minimumof 30minutesof suchactivityonmost daysof the weekwill mean
stronger,denserbones.
ProtectBone Health:Your Menopause Plan
It’snevertoolate to start a bone healthactionplanwiththese strategies.
Exercise.If youhaven’tstartedaregularweight-bearingexercise program, it’snottoolate,andit
becomesevenmore importantasyouage.You’ll getthe mostbenefitif youvarythe activities —
thiswill make itmore interesting,too.
Get calcium.Calciumbuildsstrongbones,andthe bestsource isyour diet.Goodsourcesof calcium
are dairyproducts,like low-fatorfat-free milk,andfishsuchassardinesandsalmon. Greenleafy
vegetablesalsohave calcium,sofill uponkale,collardgreens,Brusselssprouts,broccoli,Chinese
cabbage,and turnipgreens.
Supplement,if needed.Womenintheirmiddle yearsneedabout1,000 milligramsof calciumaday.
Aftermenopause,the National OsteoporosisFoundationrecommendsboostingthatnumberto
between1,500 and 2,000 milligramsaday.If you’re notgettingenoughcalciumfromyourdiet,talk
to yourdoctor about supplements.
Cut back oncaffeine.Caffeinecausesyourbody toexcrete calciummore quickly.Sodrinkless
regularcoffee,tea,andcaffeinatedsoftdrinks — andavoidhigh-caffeine energydrinks.
Drinkonlyinmoderation.Alcohol canloweryourbody’sabilitytoabsorbcalcium.If youdrink,keep
it to a glassa day.
Cut downonsalt. Like caffeine andalcohol,saltyfoodscancause youto lose calciumandcan speed
bone loss.Processedandcannedfoodstendtobe highinsalt,so limityourintake.Whenyoudoeat
these foods,lookforlow- orno-salt-addedbrands.
Bone up on vitaminD.You needagood supplyof vitaminDto helpabsorbcalcium.The National
OsteoporosisFoundationrecommendswomenyoungerthan50 get400 to 800 international units
(IUs) of vitaminDdaily;those 50 and olderneed800 to 1,000 IUs. You can alsoget vitaminDfrom
justa fewminutesof sunlightandfromsome foods,includingfish,oysters,andpackagedfoodsthat
have beenfortified,suchascereal.It’shardto get all the vitaminDyou needfromyourdiet,soyou

3. may needsupplementstomaintainyourbone health.Manycalciumsupplementsdesignedfor
womenalsocontainvitaminD.
Considerosteoporosisdrugs.Several medicationsonthe marketcanhelpincrease yourbone
strength.One optionishormone replacementtherapy(HRT), whichreplacesthe estrogenlostafter
menopause.However,HRTcan have side effects,includinganincreasedriskforendometrial and
breastcancer.
Bisphosphonatesare anotheroption.Thesemedicationsslow yourbone’sreabsorptionrate soyou
lose less bone.Itisunclear,however,whetherthe benefitsof these medicationslastbeyondafew
years.
Aftermenopause,you’llwanttodiscussthe needforthese optionswithyourdoctor.“Some maybe
betterforyou basedonyour healthhistorythanothers,"saysCannada.“There are differencesin
dosingschedules,weeklytoannually,andmethodgiven — oral versusIV.The mostimportantthing
isto start the medicationswithinfive yearsof menopause.”
Cut yourchance of falling.Clearyourhome of cluttersoyou’re nottrippingovershoesleftinthe
hallwayora wire runningbetweenyourdeskandthe door.Fix the lightingsoyoucansee yourway
at night.Strengtheningandbalance exercisessuchastai chi can helpyouimprove yourbalance.By
reducingfalls, youreduce yourriskforbone fracture.
Bone densitystartstodecline once youreachyour thirties,andmenopause acceleratesthe loss.For
a lifetimeof goodbone health,fightbackbyeatingahealthydiet,maintainingahealthyweight,
gettingenough calciumandvitaminDinyour diet,andstayingphysicallyactive.