Diet and Bone Health

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Bone is a living tissue that is constantly broken down and replaced. Osteoporosis occurs when the creation of new bone tissue no longer keeps pace with the removal of older bone tissue.

When this happens, bones become weak and brittle, making them highly susceptible to fracture from even mild stresses such as bending over or coughing.

Osteoporosis is a major public health concern affecting elderly populations, particularly post-menopausal Caucasian and Asian women.

Your risk of developing osteoporosis is affected by heritable factors beyond your control as well as non-heritable factors that you can control, most importantly nutrition and physical activity.

Recently, a study reviewed the most recent clinical studies to determine what impact, if any, dietary patterns had on bone health and the risk of developing osteoporosis.

For this review, published in the January 2017 issue of Advances in Nutrition, the authors analyzed the results of 49 large-scale clinical studies conducted in more than 20 countries around the world.

Although many clinical studies have been conducted that have established links between the intake of individual nutrients and individual foods on bone health and osteoporosis, the authors focused on studies of overall dietary patterns, believing that these studies provide more useful information for guiding public health policy and consumer choices.

According to the authors, “describing and quantifying diet through dietary patterns enables the study of the entire diet, rather than individual foods or nutrients; hence, assessing dietary patterns is the preferred approach to explain the association between overall diet and bone health.

Upon reviewing the current evidence, the authors found that dietary patterns stressing the intake of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, poultry, fish, nuts, legumes, and low-fat dairy products showed a beneficial impact on bone health.

In addition, dietary patterns associated with good bone health also limited the intake of soft drinks, fried foods, meat, processed foods, sweets, and refined grains.

These healthy dietary patterns, which include the Mediterranean diet, Healthy Eating Index, and Alternative Healthy Eating Index, led to a decreased risk of osteoporosis as well as bone fracture among the elderly.

The authors believe that their findings warrant further studies and clinical trials using standardized approaches and measurement techniques in order to more accurately evaluate the impact of dietary patterns on bone health and the risk of osteoporosis.

In conclusion, the authors believe “early integration of the bone-bene
ting dietary pattern into health promotion initiatives would improve bone mineral accrual and maintenance during early years and reduce the risk of osteoporosis and subsequent fractures later in life.”

New Mexico Orthopaedics is a multi-disciplinary orthopedic clinic located in Albuquerque New Mexico. We have multiple physical therapy clinics located throughout the Albuquerque metro area.

New Mexico Orthopaedics offers a full spectrum of services related to orthopedic care and our expertise ranges from acute conditions such as sports injuries and fractures to prolonged, chronic care diagnoses, including total joint replacement and spinal disorders.

Because our team of highly-trained physicians specialize in various aspects of the musculoskeletal system, our practice has the capacity to treat any orthopedic condition, and offer related support services, such as physical therapy, WorkLink and much more.

If you need orthopedic care in Albuquerque New Mexico contact New Mexico Orthopaedics at 505-724-4300.