No matter what your age, having strong bones and a good teeth is important. You can achieve those two easier by adopting healthy habits. Exercise and diet create stronger bones and teeth for a start. There are many other factors that impact both teeth and bones, but these two factors also affect your overall health, making them a great place to start. It’s long been known that exercise and eating healthy reduce the risk for many serious conditions, so you’ll get double the benefit starting with these. Many of the same nutrients necessary for building bones are also necessary for remineralization of tooth enamel. Again, you get more benefit from eating healthy than just stronger bones and teeth.
Exercise can boost your bone density and slow the depletion of bone mass.
If you were active as a teen and into your 30s, you may be lucky enough to have great bone density. Lots of things affect how much bone loss there is in later life, including genetics, diet and activity level. After 30, the building process slows and the balance shifts to more bone lost than gained. Here’s where exercise and diet are even more important. If you’re younger, in the bone building stage, exercise can boost the amount of bone tissue creating, so even if there’s bone loss, it isn’t as critical. If you’re past 30, exercise and diet can slow the loss of bone and even reverse it. Studies show that weight bearing exercises and strength building exercises can increase bone mass, no matter what your age.
What you eat makes a huge difference.
If you’re chronically soaking your teeth in sugar and acidic foods, expect dental carries and enamel erosion. Sugar is a well-known culprit of tooth decay, but so is starch. These mix with the enzymes in saliva and create an acid that plays havoc on enamel. While dried fruits may be natural, they also are high in sugar and can stick to teeth. Opt for fresh fruits over dried ones. You need calcium, vitamin D and vitamin K2 for strong bones and teeth. Getting adequate and safe exposure to the sun is one way to boost your vitamin D. Eating foods higher in calcium throughout the day is far better than taking a supplement. Eating meats, fermented foods and eggs help. Adding collagen to your diet, which is easily done with bone broth, can also help keep bones and teeth strong.
Adopt some strategies to improve your potential for healthy bones and teeth.
Make sure you walk enough. It might sound way to simple, but walking is a form of weight bearing exercise. If you walk between three and five miles a week, you’ll boost bone building. I like the idea of wearing a pedometer. It not only adds a bit of whimsy to the effort, you can get a good picture of just how far you really do walk. While other aerobic types of exercise, such as bike riding, are good for your cardiovascular system, walking helps increase the bone building process.
- Include foods high in magnesium and zinc. Magnesium is necessary to convert vitamin D to the form that absorbs calcium. Avocados and nuts can boost magnesium. Zinc boosts bone building. Shrimp, beef, pumpkin seeds and flaxseeds are a good source of zinc.
- Get the ratio of your intake of Omega3 fatty acids to Omega6 more in line. While the ideal balance is somewhere between 1 omega3 for every 3 to 6 omega6, the average American diet is more in line with a 1 to 25 ratio. Omega3 promotes bone formation and slows bone loss.
- Yo-yo weight loss or too low of calorie intake also contributes to bone loss. Eating healthier without an extremely low calorie diet, under 1000 to 1200 calories, is the best method of weight loss.
- Make sure you have adequate protein intake. The bone is made of 50% protein.