Healthy Bones

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Healthy Living

Happy World Osteoporosis Day!

To celebrate, we’d like to give you a simple list of where to find 3 key bone-building nutrients – calcium, vitamin D and protein!

Calcium

One of the most important ingredients for bone health is calcium (not to mention nerve signals and heart health!). Many people already know that calcium can be found in a variety of dairy products (rather than milk, think fermented dairy products like yoghurt and Swiss or cheddar cheeses).

If you can’t, or don’t eat a lot of dairy, you can find calcium in:

Green leafy vegetables (parsley, broccoli and spinach)
Sardines and salmon
Sesame seeds
Tahini
Nuts (especially almonds and brazil nuts)
Tofu
Soy beans

Remember that calcium stores can be depleted by caffeine, red meat, brewer’s yeast, processed foods, alcohol and excess sugar and salt.

Vitamin D

The sunshine vitamin, or vitamin D is a crucial vitamin for bone health and other health functions. There has been a lot of media about growing vitamin D deficiencies in Australia. Vitamin D has many functions in the body, two of the most important are maintaining bone strength and maintaining the body’s calcium balance.

You can get Vitamin D from:

The body can produce Vitamin D in the skin after sun-light exposure- the recommended amount of time in the sun is between 10min and 20min per day on bare skin (especially your face, arms and hands) before 10am and after 2pm.
Taking a supplement
Vitamin D can also be found in some foods: fish-live oils, fatty fish, mushrooms, egg yolks and liver

Protein

Protein contains amino acids – which is what the body uses to build and repairs cells in our bones, muscles, and other body tissues. Protein is a vital component of your diet, not just for bone health but for overall health. Protein is commonly found in meat, poultry, seafood, dairy and nuts.

Did you know that craving any of these foods might be your body asking you for more protein?