Osteoporosis Can be Prevented and Reversed Without Drugs

We’ve all heard of osteoporosis. It brings to mind images of old people with humped backs and broken hips. We wonder how that could happen. Is it just part of growing old? Or is there a way to prevent it from occurring? If you take the proper steps, the answer is yes; you can actually increase bone density and return your bones to full health.

WHAT CAUSES OSTEOPOROSIS

Before we can understand the cause of osteoporosis (weak bones) we need to explore how the bones function in the body. Bones are living tissue that must constantly be rebuilt. This is done by a two part process. In the first step cells called osteoclasts clear old minerals out of weakened bone tissue and carry them into the bloodstream where they are filtered and disposed of. Next, cells called osteoblasts deposit new minerals and collagen back into the bone. A hormone called PTH signals the osteoclasts to pull the calcium from the bones and another hormone called calcitonin stimulates the osteoblasts to deposit calcium into the bones.
Now that we know the basic process we can explore what happens when everything doesn’t work correctly.

• Magnesium Deficiency

Magnesium suppresses the hormone that tells your body to pull calcium from the bones, and stimulates the hormone that tells the body to put calcium back into the bones. The hormone calcitonin relies on magnesium to function properly. When we lack magnesium, the balance between PHT and calcitonin tilts too far toward PTH, causing an over stimulation of ostioclasts; causing net bone loss.

• Excess Acidity

A diet consisting of too many acid foods like bread, grains, meat, soft drinks and pasta, but lacking in fruits and vegetables causes acidity. To function properly, our blood must remain a neutral PH, so the body pulls calcium from the bones to neutralize any acidivity. This is a major factor in the development of osteoporsis.

• Imbalance of Cortisol and DHEA

Cortisol is produced when there is stress. DHEA balances the cortisol. When there isn’t enough DHEA, cortisol pulls calcium from the bones to compensate. Also if you are generally low in hormones, as many women are after menopause, the result will be a loss of bone density.
-Commercial Medications
The way some drugs on the market work is by killing off osteoclasts. If you recall, osteoclasts are the cells that carry old minerals out of the bones. The result is a denser bone with high amounts of old, poor quality bone cells, making them weaker and more brittle. Other medications block the absorption of calcium into the bones and all drugs have side effects at varying degrees.

Things You Can Do Right Now To Reverse and Prevent Osteoporosis

1. Stop Drinking Soft Drinks
Soft drinks contain high amounts of phosphoric acid and sugar making them very acidic. Calcium is pulled out of the body to neutralize that acid, which lowers blood calcium levels. Then, to remedy this, parathyroid glands restore calcium to the blood by pulling it out of the bones. It becomes a vicious cycle.

2. Eat a Balanced Diet
Meats and carbohydrates are also highly acidic. With the addition of lots of fresh fruits and vegetables you can stabilize the acid without pulling calcium from your bones.

3. Stop Excess Milk Consumption
Milk and dairy products have ten times more calcium than magnesium. If you drink a lot of milk, supplement your diet with extra magnesium. It’s all about balance.

4. Increase Your Magnesium Intake.
Whether you drink milk or not you probably need more magnesium. Americans are overwhelmingly magnesium deficient and it is showing up in nationwide statistics of osteoporosis, as well as other diseases.

5. Reduce Stress
There are numerous ways to reduce stress: meditation, prayer, and yoga to name a few.

6. Exercise
Exercise is very important to increasing your bone density, particularly weight bearing exercise such as walking, stair climbing or dancing, because muscle pulling on bone build and maintains bone mass. There are numerous other health benefits from exercise as well. Start with walking a short distance three days a week. Then find fun ways to get your body moving, and different muscle groups working.

7. Supplements

• Vitamin A: 5,000 I.U. daily

• Vitamin B6: 25-50 mg daily

• Vitamin B12: 10-1000mcg daily

• Folic Acid: 800-1000mcg (.8-1 mg) daily

• Vitamin C: 500-3000 mg or more daily

• Vitamin D: 800-2000 mg or more daily

• Vitamin E: 400 I.U. daily

• Vitamin K1: 1000 mcg daily

• Vitamin K2: 45-180 mcg daily

• Essential amino acids: 1 tbsp daily

• Strontium: 680 mg daily

• Potassium: 4000-6000 mg daily

• Boron: 3-5 mg daily

• Copper: 1-3 mg daily

• Manganese: 10-25 mg daily

• Zinc: 20-30 mg daily

• Magnesium: 400-800 mg daily

• Calcium: 1000-1200 mg daily

• Phosphorus: 700 mg daily

• Fish or flaxseed oil: 2 grams daily

If you can find a good multi vitamin and mineral supplement that contains some of these, it will cut down on the number of pills you need to take, but try to get these recommended daily amounts, and make sure it is a good quality vitamin.


As you can see, by making a few lifestyle changes you can prevent, and reverse even advanced stages of osteoporosis.