Osteoporosis Prevention
The cornerstone to prevention of bone loss and osteoporosis is to try to reduce our risks. We can do nothing about our gender or advancing age, but we can take action to reduce some of the more important risks. Quitting smoking, for example, reduces your risk for bone loss.
It's very important to get adequate calcium and Vitamin D, and many of us just do not get enough through the average American diet. Our major source of dietary calcium is through dairy foods with a glass of milk providing 300 mg and a carton of yougurt providing 400 mg. Adults should get a minimum of 1000 to 1500 mgs of calcium per day, which for most of us requires taking some supplemental calcium.
Vitamin D is essential for the absorbtion of calcium, and it's now known that we need more than previously thought. Vitamin D is synthesized in our skin on exposure to direct sunlight or ingested in foods such as egg yolks, fish, liver or in supplements. Adults require 1200 IU per day which again usually requires taking supplements.
An extremely important risk reduction action is to adopt a more active life style. Bones that don't experience regular stress conclude they don't need to remain strong, so they let their mass and strength decline. It's a 'use it or lose it' situation. Exercise has many well known and important health benefits; such as increased muscle strength and coordination, decreased cardiovascular disease, facilitation of weight loss, decreasing risk of diabetes, and psychological benefits. There is also a strong consensus that regular exercise can play a role in the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis, and that exercise walking is one of the best and easiest options.
The WeightHat™ Concept takes the knowledge that exercise walking can help to maintain bone mass and improves on walking's effectiveness. Wearing a weighted hat should stimulate spinal bone growth to help prevent osteoporosis, with the additional benefits of encouraging good posture and the exercise habit!