Osteoporosis is a major health concern today, affecting more than 25 million Americans, 80 percent of which are female.

It is a systemic skeletal disease characterized by low bone mass and deterioration of bone tissue.

According to the American Osteoporosis Foundation, up to 1.3 million fractures occur annually as a result of this disease.

The good news is that many osteoporosis risk factors—such as the quality of our diet and vitamin/mineral intake—are actually under our own control, enabling us to take action to help prevent this debilitating health problem.

Getting enough nutrients for optimal bone health may be difficult to achieve through diet alone.

According to Alan R. Gaby, M.D., we require a broad array of nutrients to prevent osteoporosis. He notes the American diet today has far lower levels of vitamins and minerals than that of our ancestors, due to the reduced mineral content of soil, as well as our increased consumption of refined white flour and sugar, which further deprive us of the nutrients we need for bone health.

Susan Brown, M.D. goes into further detail on the benefits of nutrients for bone health in her book Better Bones, Better Body (Keats Publishing, 2000).

She notes that along with calcium (1000-1500 mg. daily), many other nutrients are essential for healthy bones, as follows:

• Magnesium helps regulate calcium metabolism
• Boron regulates calcium, magnesium and phosphorus metabolism
• Copper aids in bone formation
• Manganese is required for bone cartilage and collagen
• Phosphorus combines with calcium to form essential bone mineral salt
• Silica is required for bone collagen
• Zinc is necessary for osteoblast (bone-building cells) formation and helps manufacture the collagen matrix that holds bones together
• Vitamin A helps increase osteoblasts
• Vitamin B-6 is necessary for hydrochloric acid production
• Vitamin B-12 is required by bone-building cells to maintain optimal functioning

• Vitamin C helps form bone collagen
• Vitamin D is essential for calcium absorption
• Vitamin K is required to manufacture the bone protein matrix
• Essential fatty acids (EFAs) help bone structure and development
• Folic acid detoxifies homocysteine, a substance that can cause osteoporosis

Again, osteoporosis is largely preventable.

Along with weight-bearing exercise and a healthy, balanced diet, one of the best ways to protect our bones on a daily basis is to take advantage of a full-potency, daily multi-vitamin/mineral formula.

Your formula of choice should include all the nutrients required for optimal bone health, as indicated above.

High-quality nutritional supplementation will not only promote optimal bone health, but may help prevent numerous other diseases while fostering overall wellness.

For more information, please contact Kiki Powers at kiki@aboutnhs.com.