Bone Density? How About Bone Tensility?
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By Stephanie Wills

Sound complicated? Not at all! Bone Density measures the mineral content per section of bone, whereas, Bone Tensility basically measures the flexibility of your bones. In other words, it indicates the extent to which your bones are capable of being stretched, bent or extended before a fracture occurs. 

Why is Bone Tensility Important?
flexiblebonesWell, most of us think of bone as being a hard, rigid and inactive substance; the skeletal "scaffolding" of our bodies. In fact, bone is a living, malleable and highly active tissue that is constantly remodeling and renewing itself (about a fifth of your skeleton is replaced each year!). So while its true that our bones need an adequate supply of minerals, it is even more important, that they are tensile enough to withstand external pressures without breaking.

Note: Even if you score positively for optimal bone density, this doesn’t necessarily mean that your bones are strong! Dense bones can in fact be thin, fragile and brittle putting you at high risk for fracture. To put it plainly, bone tensility is a far better indicator of the true strength of your bones compared to bone density! 

So How Do I Get Flexible Bones?
!If you want strong, tensile bones, restoring your calcium and magnesium balance and spending more time in the sun is what you need to focus on. 

bonecheck- Calcium is not as important as we thought…
You may be surprised to note that you only need about 500mg of calcium a day in supplement form. Calcium, if taken in excess, can cause bones to become brittle rather than flexible!  It is essential therefore to take your calcium supplement either as a chelate e.g. calcium citrate or as a calcium hydroxyapatite (probably the most absorbable form of calcium!) The rest should come from a diet rich in whole foods like wholegrains (especially millet), beans, nuts, seeds and dark green leafy vegetables. Please note that dairy is not a good bio-available source of calcium (with the exception of probiotic-rich plain yogurt). 

- Rather increase your Magnesium intake
Recently, a study published in the Journal of Applied Nutrition showed an improvement in the bone health of postmenopausal women who took more magnesium and less calcium than has been generally recommended. This is probably due to the fact that magnesium binds to protein in our bones and helps keep them supple (appropriate bone tensility). Magnesium also helps the body absorb and utilise calcium properly whereas too much calcium will inhibit its absorption. leafy-greens

We recommend you increase your magnesium intake to 600-800 mg/day. Also include high magnesium food sources such as; nuts (cashews, almonds and macadamias) avocados, green leafy vegetables, oatmeal and most importantly raw cacao (another great excuse to indulge in raw chocolate!)

- Vitamin D – The missing link. 
Vitamin D stimulates the absorption of calcium, raises circulating calcium levels, and helps drive calcium into bone. As a side benefit, vitamin D indirectly causes osteoclasts (the cells that break down bone) to become less active, thereby preventing bone loss and degradation. 

The best way to get vitamin D is direct sunlight on the skin (especially for the elderly), otherwise vitamin D supplementation (1,000 IU/day preventatively; 2,000-4,000 IU/day therapeutically) and eating vitamin D-rich foods, such as fatty fish, liver and egg yolk, helps to promote strong tensile bones.  

- Boron
Boron is a powerful little mineral that supports bone health in a number of ways. Not only does it cause the body to retain more calcium than it loses (positive calcium balance), it also helps regulate Vitamin D levels and even helps balance hormones in postmenopausal women! All of which promotes strong healthy and flexible bones.  

Other Lifestyle Factors  
bone-health-2- Exercise – especially weight-bearing exercises
Again, I’m sure you’ve heard it all before, but exercise is critical to maintaining bone mass and/or slowing the rate of loss. However, it is not only what we weigh that is important; it is the amount of muscle that we have that is a determining factor. It seems that weight training not only improves muscle strength and tone, it also contributes to bone health as well.  

But don’t worry; you don’t need to train like an athlete! 30 – 60mins of exercise 3 or 4 times a week is more than enough. Even doing 3 intense 10-min exercise sessions a day makes a big difference. Just be sure to incorporate some sort of weight-bearing or resistance training into this time.    

Beware of certain medications
Unfortunately there are a number of medications that may increase bone loss. These include certain thyroid-related drugs and glucocorticoids (steroid medications usually prescribed for asthma or arthritis). Also beware of antacids and the like which block or suppress the secretion of stomach acid: The last thing people need is less stomach acid as calcium cannot be absorbed unless adequate hydrochloric acid (HCl) is present.  

medicationBisphosphonates (prescribed to increase bone density by preventing bone resorption) are another class of pharmaceutical drugs that have many uncomfortable side effects. These include gastrointestinal discomforts such as nausea, heartburn and severe abdominal pain. They also almost triple your risk of developing bone necrosis (a disease where the bone actually collapses and dies) as well as increasing the risk for artrial fibrillation (irregular heartbeat); symptoms include lightheadedness, heart palpitations and chest pain.  

While some of these mediations are necessary, please always check with your health-care provider what the side-effects are and whether there is a better (or natural!) alternative. We at Lifestyle Health are firm believers that a healthy diet, correct nutritional supplements and exercise are the most effective and beneficial ways to improve and maintain strong healthy bones!