What will 2016 bring? When it comes to my Better Bones Blog, I would like YOU to help me find the answers!
Here’s a summary of our 2016 survey.
If you still have some ideas, please leave them in the comments section below. I always enjoy hearing from you.
What a year! From the hazards of sitting, to the benefits of watching cat videos to reversing joint damage, we covered a lot of fascinating ground together.
But when I take a look at the year’s top Better Bones blog posts, the most popular topics cover nutrients and foods needed to protect your bones. Here are the top 5 Better Bones blog posts of 2015:
All this reader interest in food makes sense to me. After all, eating the right foods and getting the right amount of nutrients is one of the best things you can do for bone health. And, who doesn’t like to eat? You’ll be sure to see more food-focused blogs soon!
There’s an exciting change taking place in medicine that’s been a long time coming! Instead of focusing on drugs as the answer to everything, many doctors are realizing that a new approach — called Functional Medicine — is a better approach to health. I couldn’t agree more, and here’s why:
Functional medicine sets itself apart from conventional medicine by:
Recently I had the opportunity to interview Dr. Sarika Arora, MD of the Aum Healing Center in Boston. Dr. Arora is an internist who also practices Functional Medicine. You might enjoy my chat with her and see that, indeed, medicine is changing, and it’s coming in our direction!
If you have experienced a needless fracture, have been told you have a high risk of fracture, or have been needlessly frightened about your bone health, consider seeking out and consulting with a doctor trained in looking for the root causes of your bone health concern. Find a physician who is willing to look at your situation carefully and to order the appropriate medical tests to help you uncover any hidden causes of bone loss.
With the start of every season, I’m reminded that with the passage of that season comes the opportunity to age well.
One great way to do this is with the exploration and maximization of our vast inner resources.
Below are simple techniques I’ll be using in the fall to tone up and energize my physical, emotional, mental and spiritual dimensions.
Why not give them try?
For just 2 minutes, twice a day, create a rejuvenating state of physical, emotional and mental rest. This is your ultimate energetic and creative source. Here’s how:
• Sit quietly and breathe deeply and gently for a count of 4
• Hold for 2 counts
• Exhale for 4 counts
• Pause for another 2 counts
• Put all your attention on the in and out movement of the breath
Release any thoughts that might come to your mind and aim to experience the stillness deep within. Whatever feelings or emotions come up acknowledge them and let them go.
Our thoughts are powerful sources of creation and attraction. Many times, however, it appears as though “our thoughts are thinking us”, instead of us deliberately choosing our thoughts. Vibrant and healthful aging is greatly enhanced by first recognizing our chronic thought patterns, and then eventually transforming them to be truly life supporting.
Our emotions — those we acknowledge and those deeply hidden away in our psyche — are often the hidden directors of our thoughts. Sit for 2 minutes, twice daily, and ask yourself, “What am I feeling right now?” In a few days, patterns of emotions will arise. Recognizing these is the first step. Then deliberately chose a more positive emotion. Choose love over fear, forgiveness over anger, compassion over criticism or judgment, light heartedness over pessimism, possibility over limitation. Say yes to life.
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Once again it is time to polish up my crystal ball — and I see a year filled with bone health advancements.
My best wishes for a happy and healthy 2015!
I find it interesting how some of our most meaningful activities begin with a simple thought, this thought takes on a life of its own, and then something grand happens!
In this case, the simple thought was meeting my client Lynn while on one of my frequent trips to Myrtle Beach. But thanks to Lynn’s amazing energy and organizing powers, our “meeting” turned into an opportunity to talk with dozens of women about Better Bones. And I think I learned just as much as they did.
I was struck by the personal stories and notable sincerity of these health-seeking women. As I listened, I wondered what I could do better to share more information. I found myself setting new goals for the coming year based on their top questions and concerns, which were:
You’ll be hearing more about all of these topics in the New Year. Let me know if you have particular concerns or areas of interest, and I’ll be happy to answer your questions.
Oh yes, and to the gracious Lynn Krippel, I send a special note of thanks for arranging the wonderful Myrtle Beach event.
When I first started studying bone health years ago, I began to question the accuracy of the most firmly held beliefs about osteoporosis. Could the blame for poor bone health truly be traced back to a lack of calcium in our diets? Is low estrogen really responsible for the widespread osteoporosis that plagues American women? As an anthropologist, I had learned that everyone’s bones naturally thin as we age, but I was puzzled by the fact that older people in other countries have much lower rates for osteoporosis, even though they consume far less calcium than we do. I was also struck by the finding that osteoporosis is rare in certain places, like Japan, where people generally have thinner, lighter bones.
That’s how it became clear to me that dietary calcium deficits, estrogen levels, and low bone density are not the main reasons for declining bone health. These conclusions set me on a course of study which has ignited my own personal passion and prompted the quest to find the true explanation for the epidemic of osteoporosis in this country.
Most people think that osteoporosis is the breakdown, or resorption, of bone but that is only one half of the story. Though we may not be aware of it, our bones are constantly being renewed with fresh tissue which is generated to replace what has been lost through wear and damage. It’s a natural formula for give and take that is intended to maintain healthy bones indefinitely. However, when the natural balance between regeneration and breakdown is upset or disrupted, bone health deteriorates and weaknesses begin to appear in the bone structure. Unfortunately, this imbalance has become the norm among American women, and its effects extend beyond bone health to threaten our total physical condition.
Happily, the other side of the coin is that when you take steps to improve bone health, you will also create better wellness for your entire body. The philosophy behind the development of my life-supporting approach to bone health blends critical findings from years of medical, nutritional, and anthropological research. This new direction honors the infinite wisdom contained within our bodies and folds in new revelations about how our environment and the food we eat affect our bones and overall health.
When we think about our physical selves, we often consider them as a jumble of single parts: eyes, mouth, arms, legs and so on. But the truth is, we are composed of trillionsof parts, all of which must perform together seamlessly to keep us in working order. This “interconnectedness” is the key to understanding how poor health in one part of your body can quickly undermine the integrity and wellness of other areas. And so it is with the bones.
Bones may seem to be “dead” and inert, but in fact, they are living tissue, charged with many important jobs that the rest of the body relies on, including mineral storage for use in chemical processes throughout the organ systems. Our bones are transforming all the time, breaking down and then building back up. Our bodies are in tune with this type of natural process, which occurs even on a cellular level. Without this constant coordination between our internal systems, we simply couldn’t function and our physical condition would almost immediately become dire.
From the time we are born, our bones are growing and acquiring strength and density, until about the age of 30, when we generally achieve “peak bone mass.” You might assume that it’s all downhill from there, and that systematic loss of bone mass is inevitable. While it is true that the bones tend to thin and become less substantial as we get older, it is possible — and natural — to retain enough bone mass and strength to withstand the stresses and strains of daily life. This information alone confirms that, with just a little help, our bones have the capability of lasting us a lifetime.
The calcium myth
Do you really need a drug for your bones?
20 key nutrients
In our day-to-day routines, many of us habitually act in ways that have profound, long-term effects on our bone health — without even realizing it! Some people regularly spend an hour at the gym or go for a run in the early morning — unknowingly giving wonderful benefits to their bones. Other people routinely spend hour after hour late at night in front of a computer screen instead of sleeping, knowing that the double espresso they buy every morning will clear out the cobwebs — but completely unaware of the stresses this habit places on their skeleton. Still others exercise and get adequate rest, but work under highly stressful conditions and unwittingly deplete their bone mineral reserves by eating a quick fast-food lunch at their desk every day.
But where the bad habits are concerned, we often don’t realize that the effects are cumulative — they add up over time — or that multiple lifestyle factors can eventually form a very heavy burden on our bones. The image below, showing the burdens that lifestyle, diet, and other factors place on our bones, might be something of a wake-up call to some people!
Total load model of bone-depleting factors ©2009. Please click on the image for a printable version.
To a certain extent, an otherwise healthy person can offset some of his or her unhealthy habits by eating good food and making sure to get the full spectrum of essential nutrients for bone health. But if you’ve had a fracture, a diagnosis of osteoporosis or osteopenia, or even simply reached the understanding that you need to improve your bone health, developing healthy lifestyle habits is a crucial step in the right direction.
By now, nearly everyone understands that smoking cigarettes, eating a lot of fatty, sugary foods, and drinking to excess are unhealthy habits. It’s also no secret that a sedentary lifestyle contributes to disease on all levels. Some people even recognize that stress and negative emotions — anger, resentment, fear, grief, and depression — can generate serious health problems, and indeed we find that the people most likely to have thin bones are those who are habitually worried and stressed.
The association between these unhealthy habits and emotional states has been well documented scientifically, and we’ve seen in clinical practice how they can impact bone health (see our article on the causes of osteoporosis). But even if you know you have these factors, what can you do about them? How do we change ingrained habits and emotions, particularly if they’ve been with us a long time?
The first step to changing our lifestyles toward a healthier alternative is to recognize the places that need changing. The second step is to understand that it will take time and may not be easy, but if you’re committed to it, you can succeed. True lifestyle change may require months or even years of vigilance. Behavior change does not happen in one step. Rather, we tend to progress through different stages on our way to successful change. Also, each of us progresses through the stages at our own rate.If you are looking for ways to improve your bone health, our “total load model” of bone depleting factors can be helpful. Click on the image of the overloaded camel for a printer-friendly version and print it out.
Take a few minutes to look at all of the bone-depleting lifestyle factors this camel carries, and circle the ones that apply to you. These are the factors that might be affecting your bone health. Identify one factor you would like to work on first — one straw you would like to take off your “camel’s back.” Next, jot down three to five reasons why altering this lifestyle factor would be good for your bones and your entire body.
Finally, develop a simple action plan — for example, decide that, beginning today, you will walk 15 minutes twice a day, or include 1 cup of vegetables with every lunch, or lower your coffee intake to one cup a day and use green tea as an alternative beverage if you really need caffeine. Develop a simple approach that makes one change at a time and notice how empowering this feels. You will find that each small life-supporting change builds on the others to help you build bone strength the way nature intended.
I’ve talked about how women who can’t gain weight are at heightened risk of osteoporosis and fracture. Just to quickly recap, I identified 3 basic issues that I see fairly often:
The question now becomes, what can a woman do to address these issues?
First, are they really eating enough food on a regular basis, or is that simply their perception? While the average adult needs 2000-2500 calories, that’s an average; some people require more, but may not realize it — and gaining weight might simply be a matter of eating more nutrient-dense foods. I also recommend that underweight women supplement with the 20 key nutrients required for bone health, particularly if they’ve been thin most of their lives, so they can be sure those nutrients are available for bone strength.
Second, I’d consider whether a metabolic or endocrine issue could be at work. Hyperthyroidism, latent autoimmune diabetes in adults, and various other chronic disorders can prevent people from gaining weight, even when they eat well. Simple blood tests can generally uncover the presence of such health issues, which need to be addressed by a specialist.
Finally, I’d look at the possibility that they might not be absorbing the food they eat. Malabsorption syndromes and digestive issues like IBS or Crohn’s disease, have obvious symptoms attached — diarrhea, gas, bloating, pain — but others, such as celiac disease, can damage the GI tract and impair nutrient absorption capabilities, sometimes without causing any distinct symptoms related to the digestion. If I saw indications of poor nutrient absorption (dry, brittle hair and nails, for instance), I might suggest that a client ask for celiac or other GI testing, and we’d look very closely at how to boost the nutritional and caloric content of her food so she gets more of what she needs.
Those who don’t feel hungry or who don’t feel like eating usually have one of two problems. Either they have an imbalance in the “hunger hormones” that stimulate appetite (often associated with zinc inadequacy), or they simply are so rushed or busy that they habitually ignore their body’s signals that it needs food, to the point that they genuinely believe they’re not hungry even when they are! These folks benefit by taking time to acknowledge and understand their physiologic needs. I would do the following:
For those who stop eating or eat less due to anxiety or stress, part of the problem is their response to anxiety and worry. For clients whose thinness is related to an anxious mind, I’d help them to learn stress-reduction techniques, and also have them focus on their intentions around eating — that is, to find ways to celebrate their meals as an affirmation of their worth. It doesn’t need to be complicated — simply saying grace before each meal, for example, can send a strong signal from the mind and spirit to the body that the food in front of you is a blessing meant to nourish you. The power of the mind should not be underestimated, and focusing it on nourishment (instead of on anxieties and worries) may be an important component of promoting healthy weight gain.
If you’re underweight, taking steps to build strong muscles, eat a nutritious diet, and reduce stress and anxiety can help you gain weight, meanwhile reducing your fracture risk. Even if the tips outlined above don’t help you to add a single pound of weight, the bone-strengthening benefits of my Better Bones approach may make the difference in staying healthy and avoiding fractures — and isn’t that what matters in the long run?
One of the most important things about bone health is that it’s never too late to build your bone strength. That’s why I’m so happy to introduce you to Suzanne, a real-life example of how you can take charge of your bone health at any stage in your life. In Suzanne’s case, she started at age 78.
Four years ago, Suzanne came to talk with me because she was highly concerned after recently breaking her pelvis. She had already fractured five ribs — with all these breaks during the 10 years she had been taking Fosamax. Clearly, her bone drugs were not preventing fractures. What’s more, Suzanne felt her medication might even be increasing her fracture risk, so her doctor recommended that she stop taking it. That’s when Suzanne came to me looking for a better alternative to bone drugs — and found it with my natural approach. She began to implement a personalized Better Bones Program with 20 key bone nutrients, the Alkaline for Life Diet, pH testing, and diet and lifestyle adjustments.
With my natural approach, Suzanne actually gained some bone density in both the spine and in the hip. Her gradual increase in bone density is continuing, with her latest bone density test showing further gains. Even more important, Suzanne has not suffered any new fractures, feels strong, and is sturdier on her feet than she was four years ago.
Suzanne was wise enough to know that the average age of a debilitating neck of the hip fracture is 80 — and that she was likely headed in that direction if she didn’t make some serious changes. Indeed, she “took the proverbial bull by the horns” and made the life-supporting changes of the Better Bones Program.
Kudos to Suzanne! I encourage everyone to use her story as an inspiration to take heart and take action. As you can see, it’s never too late to improve the strength of your bones, build new bone and reduce your fracture risk.