Bone Health

Good bone health throughout a person's lifetime promotes strong bones and wards off diseases, such as osteoporosis. Osteoporosis is a condition in which bones are fragile, making them fracture (break) more easily. The development of strong, healthy bones should start in the childhood and teenage years when growth is at a maximum. Taking care of one's bones while young will help prevent problems in the future.

Good bone health will help prevent future skeletal disorders such as osteoporosis. Source: International Osteoporosis Foundation

Ways to Build Strong Bones

A person can build strong bones by getting enough calcium and weight-bearing physical activity during the tween and teen years, when bones are growing their fastest. Young people in this age group have calcium needs that they can’t make up for later in life. In the years of peak skeletal growth, teenagers build more than 25% of adult bone. By the time teens finish their growth spurts, around age 17, roughly 90% of their adult bone mass is established.

How Calcium Builds Healthy Bones

The body continually removes and replaces small amounts of calcium from the bones. If the body removes more calcium than it replaces, the bones will become weaker and have a greater likelihood of breaking. Getting lots of calcium when a person is young can make sure the body doesn’t have to take calcium from the bones to meet its needs.

Bones have their own “calcium bank account.” Depositing as much calcium as possible during the tween (8-12 years old) and teen years helps a person reach peak bone mass. After age 18 the account closes and usually no more calcium is added to bone. After the age of 18 years, bone strength can only be preserved by maintaining the calcium stored in the bones.

Sources of Calcium

Calcium is found in a variety of foods. Low-fat and fat-free milk and other dairy products are great sources of calcium.

Tweens and teens can get most of their daily calcium from three cups of low-fat or fat-free milk, but they also need additional servings of calcium to get the 1,300 mg necessary for strong bones.

Some reasons low-fat and fat-free milk and dairy products are great sources of calcium include the following:

• Low-fat and fat-free milk have lots of calcium with little or no fat.
• The calcium in low-fat and fat-free milk and dairy products is easy for the body to absorb and is in a form that gives the body easy access to the calcium.
• Low-fat and fat-free milk has added vitamin D, which helps the body absorb calcium.
• In addition to calcium, milk and dairy products provide other essential nutrients that are important for optimal bone health and development.

Below are some other good sources of calcium:

• Dark green, leafy vegetables, such as spinach, broccoli, and bok choy
• Foods with calcium added, such as calcium-fortified tofu, orange juice, soy beverages, and breakfast cereals or breads

Food labels list how much calcium is in one serving of food. The Percent Daily Value (% DV) next to the calcium number on the food label indicates what percentage of a person's daily requirements is found in one serving.

Building Healthy Bones With Physical Activity

Bones are living tissue. Weight-bearing physical activity causes new bone tissue to form, which makes bones stronger. This kind of physical activity also makes muscles stronger. When muscles push and tug against bones during physical activity, bones and muscles become stronger.

Other Approaches to Good Bone Health

The video below describes other important factors that influence bone health, such as vitamin D and digestion.

Holistic and alternative treatments

In addition to calcium, the following nutrients are helpful to improving bone health:

• Magnesium
• Boron
• Folic acid
• Copper
• Zinc
• Vitamins B6, B12, D, and C
• Strontium
• Fish oil

External Links

Bone up on bone loss! Exercise to build healthy bones

Milk Matters Campaign Publications and Materials

How to Understand and Use the Nutrition Facts Label

What are good sources of calcium

Surgeon General’s Report on Bone Health and Osteoporosis: What it means for you