If you don’t want your bones to become brittle, you must avoid doing these 4 things!

Everyone is familiar with "osteoporosis". It is a common disease that seriously threatens the health of the elderly. The problem of osteoporosis in middle-aged and elderly women is particularly serious.

The results of an epidemiological survey on osteoporosis in my country showed that the prevalence of osteoporosis in people aged 50 and above was 19.2%; in people aged 65 and above, it reached 32.0%, including 10.7% for males and 51.6% for females [1].

What is more serious is that the bone health level of Chinese people is also worrying, and there is a trend of younger people suffering from low bone mass. The survey found that there are a large number of people with low bone mass in my country, who are at high risk of osteoporosis. The low bone mass rate of people aged 40-49 in my country reached 32.9%, including 34.4% for men and 31.4% for women.

01

What is osteoporosis?

Osteoporosis, to put it simply, means that the bones become loose.

Our bones are made up of a hard shell that contains trabeculae (a spongy bone tissue). The internal structure of healthy bones is similar to that of a sponge. In addition to supporting the body and protecting vital organs, bones also store minerals such as calcium.

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In the process of bone metabolism, a certain amount of bone tissue is dissolved and absorbed every day, and a considerable amount of bone tissue is generated. The balance between the two maintains the stability of bones. Once the bone generation is less than its dissolution and absorption, the bone tissue will gradually become thinner, thinner or even broken, causing osteoporosis.

Bone loss usually occurs quietly without obvious symptoms; however, as osteoporosis worsens, symptoms such as back pain, hunchback, and shortening may occur. It is also very easy to fall and fracture. Falls and fractures caused by osteoporosis are a very fatal problem for the elderly [2].

Among them, femoral fractures are particularly dangerous, and about 20% of patients die within one year after diagnosis . The death of Mr. Yuan Longping, the father of rice, was also related to an accidental fall. Therefore, osteoporosis is often called the "silent killer".

02

To prevent osteoporosis, pay attention to these 4 things

In daily life, if you don’t want your bones to become brittle, you must avoid or even avoid the following four things:

1. Drinking

Long-term drinking can inhibit osteoblast activity, reduce osteoblast proliferation and activity, reduce bone formation, and lead to bone loss.

This is because alcohol inhibits osteoblast function and affects sex hormone secretion, interferes with vitamin D metabolism, and promotes parathyroid hormone secretion.

Moreover, excessive drinking will increase the risk of falling, which is even worse for patients with osteoporosis. So it is recommended that you try not to drink.

If you have to drink for work or other reasons, according to the recommendations of the Chinese Dietary Guidelines, men should not consume more than 25 grams of alcohol per day, and women should not consume more than 15 grams of alcohol per day.

This is roughly equivalent to: women can drink a maximum of 360 ml of beer, 150 ml of wine, or 75 ml of low-alcohol liquor per day, and men can drink a maximum of 720 ml of beer, 300 ml of wine, or 150 ml of low-alcohol liquor per day.

But it must be noted that there is no "safe value" for drinking! The safest amount of alcohol is 0!

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2. Drinking caffeinated beverages such as coffee and tea

my country's "Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Primary Osteoporosis (2017 Edition)" suggests that drinking large amounts of coffee and tea will affect calcium absorption and increase the risk of osteoporosis[3].

However, this doesn't mean we can't drink coffee and tea at all.

In fact, the calcium loss caused by coffee and tea is not as terrible as everyone imagines. Each cup of coffee will only increase the calcium loss by about 2 to 3 mg.

For coffee and tea lovers, we recommend:

1) Drink in moderation, no more than 3 cups a day.

Most health organizations believe that healthy adults can drink coffee in moderation. The International Osteoporosis Association and the National Osteoporosis Association of the United States recommend that daily coffee intake be limited to 3 cups [4].

2) Add some milk when drinking coffee or tea, or eat more dairy products.

Including drinking milk, yogurt, and eating cheese. The calcium obtained from milk can play a good role in compensation, so you don't have to worry too much about this loss.

We need to remind everyone that in addition to coffee itself, many beverages and foods in life also contain caffeine, including many carbonated drinks (such as cola), energy drinks, chocolate, etc. If you eat these things, remember to drink less coffee.

3. Eating a high-sodium diet

High sodium and high salt intake will promote the excretion of urinary calcium in the human body, which will lead to bone loss in the long run and increase the risk of osteoporosis.

For every 2,300 mg of sodium (equivalent to 6 grams of salt) excreted by the kidneys, 40 to 60 mg of calcium is lost at the same time. Excessive intake of salt means more calcium will be taken away. If a middle-aged woman eats 1,000 mg more sodium (equivalent to 2.5 g of salt) every day and does not take in more calcium, all the calcium excreted comes from bone calcium, so she will lose 1% more bone calcium every year.

The reality is that the sodium intake of Chinese residents is already twice the healthy intake recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO), especially in some areas in the north where people eat saltier food, while the calcium intake is only half of the recommended value.

The main source of sodium in our daily diet is salt, so when cooking, we must pay attention to using less salt and eat a light diet.

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In addition, hidden sodium is a problem that people often overlook. Condiments such as monosodium glutamate, chicken powder, soy sauce, fermented bean curd, and processed foods such as plums and potato chips also contain a lot of sodium.

In daily life, it is recommended to reduce salt intake from the following aspects:

1. Use less salt when cooking your own dishes, which can greatly reduce your sodium intake.

2. When eating, consciously avoid eating too salty foods , such as pickled vegetables and sausages.

3. Develop the habit of measuring quantity when cooking, and reduce the amount of salt used by using measuring methods (such as a quantitative salt spoon).

4. Use cooking techniques to reduce the use of salt. For example, wait until the food is almost out of the pot before adding salt for seasoning; use more vinegar, spices, lemon juice, etc. to replace part of the salt.

5. Use steaming, boiling and other cooking methods more often, and use less stir-frying, pepper salt and other methods to cook food.

6. When purchasing packaged foods, pay attention to the nutrition labels and try to choose low-sodium products.

4. Smoking

A large number of studies have shown that many harmful substances in tobacco can affect bone metabolism, inhibit bone formation, promote bone absorption, cause increased bone loss, and ultimately lead to osteoporosis and increase the risk of fractures. The bone loss rate of smokers is about 1.5 to 2 times that of non-smokers. Smoking can also advance the age of menopause and cause premature ovarian failure in women. Insufficient estrogen in the body after menopause will aggravate osteoporosis.

Moreover, the harm and damage to health caused by smoking are multi-organ and multi-faceted, so we should all refuse to smoke.

What needs to be reminded is that osteoporosis is a disease caused by multiple factors.

For patients with osteoporosis, in addition to doing less or avoiding the above 4 things as much as possible, they should maintain a balanced diet to ensure adequate intake of calcium and vitamin D. At the same time, they should also pay attention to moderate exercise to promote bone health.

References:

[1] https://www.chinacdc.cn/gsywlswxx_9498/crbs/201812/t20181217_198289.html

[2] Working Group of the Chinese Osteoporosis Diagnosis and Treatment Guidelines for the Elderly (2018), Osteoporosis Branch of the Chinese Society of Gerontology and Geriatrics, Ma Yuanzheng, et al. Chinese Osteoporosis Diagnosis and Treatment Guidelines for the Elderly (2018)[J]. Chinese Journal of Osteoporosis, 2018, 24(12): 1541-1567. DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1006-7108.2018.12.001.

[3] Chinese Medical Association Osteoporosis and Bone Mineral Disease Branch. Guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of primary osteoporosis (2017)[J]. Chinese Journal of Osteoporosis, 2019, 25(3): 281-309. DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1006-7108.2019.03.001.

[4] China Food and Nutrition Information Exchange Center, Institute of Nutrition and Health, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Health Communication Branch of Chinese Preventive Medicine Association, etc. Scientific consensus on coffee and health[J]. Chinese Journal of Preventive Medicine, 2018(11). DOI:10.3760/cma.j.issn.0253-9624.2018.11.004.

Author: Ruan Guangfeng, Director of the Science and Technology Department of the Kexin Food and Nutrition Information Exchange Center

Review | Song Shuang, Associate Researcher, Institute of Nutrition and Health, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention

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