Healthy bones are important to leading healthy lives. Bones not only provide structure to our body but also helps store calcium that is required for various body processes.
Most of us have a misconception that only a calcium-rich diet is important to maintain bone health. But this is not the case as there are many other factors that control the health of our bones. Many people have experienced weaker bones that are prone to fractures despite having enough calcium in their diet. Severe fractures often require surgical intervention, and orthopedic implants depending upon the location & severity of the fracture may also be used.
In this post, we will talk about factors other than consuming calcium that affects bone health in women. The reason why we are focusing specifically on women’s bone health is that they are more prone to orthopedic issues. Let us see what those key factors are.
Factors Affecting Bone Health in Women
Women have smaller skeletons than men plus, their bone density is also lower when compared to the other gender. And hence, women face more orthopedic challenges like fractures, spinal issues, and others. To reduce the risk of such situations, it is important to consider all the important factors that affect bone health. Let us see what those are:
Sedentary Lifestyle
Not only women, but men can also face consequences of liking the sedentary lifestyle. Bones become weak in people without any significant cause those who perform minimal to no physical activity. Our body needs optimum physical activity to produce new & healthy bone cells.
Physical activity doesn’t mean only doing routine activities that everyone does but it also means performing exercise daily. Strength and resistance training exercises are known to provide good benefits in improving bone health. Thus, both men and women must make it a routine to do exercise. If possible, it is also advised to take the guidance of a specialist.
Time of Puberty
Puberty is the age when we all experience a lot of changes in the body. During this period, teenagers experience hormonal changes, growth in their organs, an increase in bone size, and brain development. So, to maintain strong & healthy bones, it is important to increase diet at this stage as the body absorbs more nutrition from the food consumed. Those who don’t pay attention to this during puberty tend to have weaker bones than others.
Menopause
Menopause is the stage where the natural menstrual cycle stops. Women experience a lot of changes during menopause, where the most affecting is the reduction in the production of estrogen and progesterone. These two hormones protect bones and prevent loss of calcium. Thus, a reduction in the production of these hormones directly affects bone health. So, to maintain bone health during menopause, it is important to focus on your diet. Besides this, smartness lies in consulting an orthopedist and taking prescribed calcium and vitamin D supplements.
Pregnancy
Pregnancy is the period where calcium demand increases in a woman’s body. This is because the fetus requires calcium for growth. If the optimum amount of calcium is not consumed, the fetus will meet the requirement from the bones of the expecting mother. Though our body responds differently during pregnancy as it reduces the loss of bone mineral density while increasing the body’s ability to absorb more calcium from the food we eat. But for that, having a complete and nutritious diet is important.
During breastfeeding as well, the calcium requirement of the mother becomes high, and that needs to be met with a healthy and complete diet.
For the content source, contact Siora Surgicals Pvt. Ltd., a renowned orthopedic device manufacturer in India. The company is also an experienced exporter of orthopedic devices, and to stretch its market reach, it is currently looking to become one of the best Orthopedic Equipment Suppliers in Greece.