Here’s an alternative remedy that could help protect your bones as you age. It’s a Chinese herbal medicine called “LiuWei Zhuanggu.” Researchers at the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Shanghai Fengxian Central Hospital, recently studied the performance of the herbal medicine in an animal clinical trial.
Specifically, the research team looked at the impact of LiuWei Zhuanggu granules (LWZGG) on mineral metabolism in “osteopenia” development. Osteopenia refers to bone mineral density that is lower than normal peak bone mineral density, but not low enough to be classified as osteoporosis.
The researchers found that LWZGG increased the following:
— Serum estrogen
— Calcitonin (a protein found in bone-forming cells)
— Bone calcium, zinc and copper levels
— Femur, lumbar vertebrae and trabecular bone density
— Tibia maximum stress and maximum bending strength
Those are pretty impressive results — though the next step needs to be a clinical trial performed on human participants.
Here’s some more health advice about how to keep your bones strong as you age, courtesy of the University of Cambridge in the U.K. There, researchers measured the benefits of physical exercise on bone health. This is what they found:
— Moderate-to-vigorous physical activity is associated with a hip fracture risk reduction of 45%
— Risk of falling is generally reduced among physically active people with a potential increased risk in the most active and inactive people.
So the message here is to exercise — but do so with a little caution. Choosing an activity that puts you at great risk may in fact cause a fracture, weakening your bones and taking away some of the benefits of being active. Moderate exercise is the way to go. Choose an activity that you are comfortable with and keep at it. Bones need exercise, even aging bones.
Along with moderate exercise, keep calcium, magnesium, and vitamin D levels up. These three are essential for bone health. Do a quick check online and find a list of favorite foods high in these vitamin and minerals and keep them in your daily diet.
For more on bone health, read the article, The Lesser-known Vitamin for Osteoporosis.