Having strong bones can help you avoid osteoporosis and other serious health conditions. Your bones support you, so you should do your best to support them back!
Strong bones are the scaffolding that holds up a healthy body. Take this quiz on building better bones to see how much you know about maintaining your bone strength.
Your bones start to thin at what age?
After 30.
Until roughly age 30, people normally build more bone than they lose. After 30 or so, bone naturally breaks down more rapidly than it builds up. This leads to gradual loss of bone mass and sometimes osteoporosis.
Thinning bones contribute to which health problems?
All of the above.
Thinning bones may lead to osteoporosis, a condition marked by loss of bone mass and strength. At first, osteoporosis may cause no symptoms. But as it progresses, you may experience back pain and fractures, as well as loss of height and a stooped posture.
At what age does exercise do the most to build bone strength?
During the preteen and teen years.
While exercise is important at any age for bone strength, it's most helpful during growth spurts. So the teen years are perfect for engaging in weight-bearing exercises to achieve this goal.
Which of these forms of exercise benefits bones the most?
Strength Training
Walking or jogging.
You've probably heard that "weight-bearing" exercises help your bones, but that doesn't mean you have to grunt at the gym all day. Walking and jogging are weight-bearing exercises. So are stair-climbing, tennis, and dancing -- any exercise that works the muscles and bones against gravity.
Which age group needs the most calcium daily?
Older children ages 9 to 18.
This age group should consume about 1,300 mg of calcium each day, because their bones are growing rapidly.
Which of these foods has the most calcium per serving?
Low-fat yogurt.
Yogurt has the most calcium, as much as 452 mg for an 8-ounce serving of the non-fat variety. In comparison, a cup of low-fat milk has 290 mg and a cup of skim milk contains 306 mg.
Which vitamin is necessary for your body to absorb calcium?
Vitamin D.
Your body needs it to absorb calcium and regulate levels of calcium in your bones. Vitamin D is called the "sunshine vitamin" because your body will form it naturally when you're out in the sun. You can also get vitamin D through food (such as salmon, canned sardines, or vitamin D-fortified milk) or through supplements.
If you don't get enough calcium from food, you should take supplements:
Several times a day.
Your body absorbs calcium supplements best if they're taken two or three times a day in amounts of 500 mg or less each time. But taking it all at once is better than not taking it at all.
Which of these can contribute to thinning bones?
Hormonal changes.
Alcohol
Cigarettes
All of the above
Too much alcohol may lower your ability to absorb calcium. For your bones and overall health, drink only in moderation.
Smoking is a well-established risk factor, and hormonal change is one of the main causes of bone loss. For women, bone loss accelerates in the years following menopause, when the body is producing less estrogen.
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