The Importance of Bone Health

The importance of Bone Health as we age

Bones are living tissue that includes the combination of bone tissue, nerves, cartilage and connective tissues, with blood vessels supplying important nutrients to the bones.

Only around 65% of bone is actually composed of hard mineral substances, with the rest being organic providing extra strength, durability and flexibility. Collagen is a key protein which is also present in bone and literally holds the calcium structure together, rather likes bricks and mortar.

By the time we reach 30 years old, our bones have reached peak bone strength and mass, with post 40 being the start of bone mass decline. This is significantly speeded up in post-menopausal women, though men do not escape this bone loss with age.

In younger adults resorption and formation of bone is equal but as we age, the process of bone resorption ie loss, sets in, resulting in a loss of bone density.

Dietary calcium is needed to ensure that healthy bone is built. Failure to get enough calcium can result in severe bone loss with the result being osteoporosis. This can of course then lead to fractures. Many diet studies across the world have shown quite conclusively that many over 50s adults are not getting enough calcium. In addition there are even more that are not eating enough of that vital Vitamin D in their diet either, the combination of which is leading to greater risk of potential bone fractures.

Even if calcium is in plentiful supply, the calcium absorption is very much dependent on vitamin D and therefore it is also vital to get enough vitamin D too.

It is vital to ensure that both calcium and Vitamin D intake is at least as much as the recommended intake, though many scientists will also argue that an even higher dose of these nutrients is essential as we age. This is due to the fact that Vitamin D synthesis is typically less efficient as we age. In addition much of our Vitamin D is synthesized as a result of plentiful sunlight, something that we typically don’t get enough of.

Another key nutrient that is often forgotten about is Vitamin K, which plays a key role in the formation of bone and there is growing evidence that diets rich in Vitamin K could play a role in increasing bone density in people with osteoporosis, which in turn has been shown is some studies to reduce fractures too.

The Prime Fifty Bone Strength product contains not only calcium, Vitamin D and Vitamin K, but a range of additional bone relevant ingredients which are designed to support optimum health in your bone structure.

See how our Strong Bones product can help keep you moving and active.