Osteoporosis is one of the biggest diseases that affects half of all women that reach age 60. Unfortunately, it is a disease that can be debilitating. While men are not immune to this problem, there is a much larger chance that a woman suffers from it. In fact, it is so prevalent now, that it has become an epidemic of sorts. Below, we will be going over some of the different ways in which you might be able to prevent this disease from affecting yourself.
How To Prevent Osteoporosis:
1. Quit Drinking Soda.
One of the biggest things that you are going to want to do when it comes to preventing osteoporosis is to stop drinking carbonated beverages. These kinds of beverages can end up leaching calcium from your bones. A lot of people that drink a lot of carbonated beverages suffer from bone loss as a direct result. Along with this, these kinds of beverages have a lot of phosphates which can result in even further calcium depletion.
2. Reduce Protein Intake.
Another major thing that you are going to want to do is try to minimize the amount of protein you consume on a regular basis. While protein is essential for your muscles, too much protein intake can result in too much acidity in the body. This can in turn cause calcium to be lost in the urine. Most people only need around 2 to 4 ounces of lean protein intake around 3 times per day. The average diet contains 2 to 3 times this amount which is considered excess.
3. Reduce Or Eliminate Caffeine Intake.
Another significant contributor to this disease is having too much caffeine intake. Each cup of coffee that you drink can actually deplete 150 mg of calcium in your urine. If you cannot cut out caffeine entirely, you will want to at least increase your calcium intake by a minimum of 150 mg for each cup that you are going to drink throughout the day.
4. Get Vitamin D.
Another huge contributor to the rise of this disease is the fact that a majority of people are not getting enough vitamin D in their life. Vitamin D is one of the biggest epidemics in our society which is important when considering this disease because Vitamin D is necessary in order for the body to be able to properly absorb calcium and put it in the bones. Therefore, if you are not getting a sufficient amount of vitamin D in your body, you are going to end up being deficient in calcium as a direct result.
5. Exercise More.
Another important thing that you are going to want to do is make sure that you are exercising as much as possible. When muscles pull against the bones during various exercises, it ultimately stimulates the bones which can increase bone growth and density.
Overall, there is a lot that can be done to minimize the risk of suffering from this disease. The tips above are a great start. By positioning your health better with the tips above, you should be able to minimize the chances that this disease negatively affects you. Be sure to increase your vitamin D intake whether through increased sun exposure or through proper supplementation and you should achieve good results. Along with this, you want to make sure that you cut out caffeine and eliminate carbonated beverages from your diet as it can leach calcium directly from your bones. All of these things are going to put your body in a good position to be as healthy as possible.