Easley Back Pain Sufferers May Benefit from Fiber to Improve Nutrient Absorption
“Youth is wasted on the young.” Have you heard that saying? Young Chiropractic supposes that there is a bit of truth in that for all of us - and particularly our Easley spines - as we age. When we are young, our bodies require our attention more than we realize. Our young bones and spines and bodies need good nutrition so that our older bones and spine and bodies are fit when we desire living our lives less painfully and more fully. Young Chiropractic shares what Easley chiropractic patients can do now to address bone mineral density (BMD) issues, no matter their current age.
BMD AND OSTEOPOROSIS: BUILD BMD WHILE YOUNG
Optimizing peak bone mass early in life may reduce osteoporosis risk later in life. A recent study wrote that Vitamin D and calcium in females positively affected bone mineral density into young adulthood. Intakes of phosphorous and the calcium:phosphorous ratio at adolescence for females negatively influenced BMD in young adulthood. Calcium intake in adolescent males strongly negatively influenced BMD in the lumbar spine at young adulthood. Other influential factors were body weight at adolescence and young adulthood which positively influenced BMD. (1) Young Chiropractic cannot emphasize enough just how important nutrition is for their future health.
BENEFITS OF IMPROVED NUTRITION BEYOND BETTER BONE MINERAL DENSITY
Osteoporosis is a disease of older folks that results from youthful (in)attention. Low serum levels of vitamin D in osteoporotic women have a tendency to have an increased chance of having any type of cancer and breast cancer. (2) Calcium intake during the teen years of life is important to reduce the risk of osteoporosis later in life. Teen girls absorb calcium better: 326mg in teenage girls versus just 73mg in older women of 1332 mg taken daily. Even more problematic is that teen girls’ daily consumption of calcium is far below what it should be. Increasing bone mass by only 5% reduces the risk of fracture by 40%. (3) Achieving healthy bones hinges on more than just calcium and vitamin D however. Deficiencies of vitamins B, C, E, and K as well as retinol compromise the health of bone. (4) Young Chiropractic presents these stats to inspire us all to increase intake of nutrients to build bone mass initially and support it later to keep it healthy.
IMPROVE ABSORPTION OF NUTRIENTS
Young Chiropractic knows that kids and their families want to be sure that their nutritional efforts will pay off. TIP: Dietary fiber may increase the body’s absorption of calcium but does it in different ways for older men and women. Higher intake of dietary fiber and fruit fiber was protective against bone loss in men but not women. Fiber from vegetables was protective against spine bone loss in women but not men. Cereal fiber or nut and legume fiber increases didn’t associate with bone loss in either men or women. Higher dietary fiber may reduce bone loss in men. (5) Who would have imagined that fiber would have anything to do with bone mineral density? Young Chiropractic bets that many of our Easley chiropractic patients would not have!
FIBER’S DEFENSE OF MEN’S BMD
Fortunately, some most alert doctors and researchers did notice that fiber intake was a protective factor of lumbar spine BMD in men 18-45 years of old but not in women. In men over 65 years, nutrient intake indicated no effect on BMD. In women between 18 and 45, fiber did not show a significant change to BMD, but daily fat intake significantly enhanced BMD. (6) An interesting side note: Some thought that bone mineral density may be a risk factor for lumbar disc herniation in young persons, but a new study discredited that thought. (7) However, medical literature points out that the general benefit of nutrition - and now fiber intake in men - on the health of the body, its bones and its spine.
CONTACT Young Chiropractic
Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. Nike Taylor on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as she helps a patients with chronic low back pain with The Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management.
Schedule your next Easley chiropractic appointment with Young Chiropractic where your spine, body and its bones are well known in their current age whether they were treated well in their youth or not!
