Healthy Diet Plans >> Articles >> Diet and Wellness

Home Remedies For Osteoporosis

Submitted by Loring A. Windblad on December 14, 2009

Osteoporosis requires a comprehensive treatment program in order to treat the condition. A combined plan focusing on nutrition guidelines, daily physical activity and safety precautions can help in preventing falls that can cause fractures. Most patients with osteoporosis may require medication in order to help slow down bone loss or prevent bone loss from taking place. Medication is also prescribed in order to increase the bone density and cut down the risk of fractures among patients with osteoporosis. Most health care professionals recommend treatment and preventative measures for individuals with the risk for osteoporosis.

Some important steps to take include:

Having a diet abundant in naturally occurring calcium and vitamin D
Incorporating regular physical activity, especially weight bearing exercise
Avoiding cigarette smoke and curbing the consumption of alcoholic beverages
Making use of protective clothing such as hip protectors or pads for individuals with a high risk of a hip fracture

Lifestyle changes are particularly important in helping to control osteoporosis, including a diet abundant in fresh vegetables and dairy products.

Prescription medications can help in slowing down the unpleasant symptoms of osteoporosis. Women with osteoporosis, especially benefit from postmenopausal estrogen therapy that has been shown to be greatly effective in decreasing bone loss and enhancing bone density especially in the spine and in the hip.
A medical study revealed that women above the age of 70 received a number of benefits from osteoporosis through the use of postmenopausal estrogen therapy along with a combination of estrogen progestin therapy.

However estrogen therapy has a number of drawbacks and it is strongly advised that women undergoing estrogen therapy must have yearly breast exams or conduct self examination along with periodic mammograms in order to rule out the risk of breast disease.

The consumption of calcium and vitamin D is highly emphasized in order to reduce the risk of osteoporosis. This particularly useful mineral and vitamin is extremely useful in preventing the bones from getting weaker. Almost every individual undergoes changes in the amount of calcium that he or she may have in the body.

The demand for calcium is the highest during childhood and adolescence especially in the skeleton is growing at a rapid pace. Pregnancy and breast-feeding also demands a large amount of calcium, so also women in their postmenopausal phase and older men require a substantial quantity of calcium.

Similarly, getting enough vitamin D is as important as the amount of calcium one takes on a daily level. Vitamin D is not only useful in improving bone health, but recent research also indicates that it may be helpful in improving the strength of muscles and enhancing the absorption of calcium in the body.

Moreover scientists are also studying the link between vitamin D and the immune system in protecting the body against certain kinds of cancers.