Prophylaxis with vegan nutrition

In principle is with a nourishing restriction like the veganen nourishing way to always pay attention to supply the body with all important food components. With regard to osteoporosis, these are calcium, vitamin D and magnesium. For the magnesium the vegane nutrition is not problematic, since food like e.g. oat flakes, wholemeal bread or also corn are good suppliers of the nutrient and with these a sufficient admission can be ensured.

Also the Vitamin D does not represent a further problem for vegan living humans. The admission of Vitamin D from the food plays generally a rather subordinated role. Substantially more crucial is the body-own formation of the vitamin in the skin, which is stimulated by sun exposure.

The regular staying under free sky should provide therefore for an appropriate supply of the body with Vitamin D. If there is nevertheless a deficiency of the vitamin in the blood, the intake of vitamin D preparations should be considered. Remains the calcium: This represents indeed a problem factor, since with the renouncement of milk products also substantial suppliers of the nutrient are void. However also some vegetable food are suitable calcium suppliers, like Broccoli or green cabbage.

Over these can be covered thus at least a part of the calcium need. The moreover one could be proven that also with a lower calcium mirror the Osteoporoserisiko is not necessarily increased, as long as sufficient movement and no lack of Vitamin D are present. It can be said thus that a vegane nutrition does not accompany necessarily with an increase of the Osteoporoserisiko. However, such a diet should always ensure that the body is sufficiently supplied with all the necessary nutrients and that this should be checked regularly. This applies not only to osteoporosis, but also to other nutrients such as Vit-B12, iron and above all proteins.

Physical activity

In addition, regular physical activity as part of prevention is incredibly important. Exercise on the one hand stimulates the metabolism of the bones and increases the amount of calcium incorporated into them, thereby strengthening the bone tissue, and on the other hand ensures that muscles are built up and maintained, which helps to protect against bone fractures. Regular exercise is essential to prevent bone resorption.

Someone who does not exercise regularly loses bone mass, regardless of age. The regularity of movement is also particularly important. Regular walks are therefore already effective, whereas occasional visits to the gym are of little use.

By its very nature, bone is better suited to a compressive rather than a tensile load.For this reason, exercise and sports such as walking, jogging, hiking, but also cycling are particularly suitable for osteoporosis prevention. Regular strength training or gymnastics are other suitable forms of exercise. However, care should always be taken to avoid overloading and especially injuries.

A sufficiently long build-up and acclimatization phase is crucial for this. If endurance and mobility are reduced, professionally instructed functional training is recommended, which can be prescribed by a doctor. By learning specific exercises, sufficient movement and strengthening of muscles and bones can be achieved.

This article may also be of interest to you: Vibration training for osteoporosisOne concept that has proven its worth in the prevention of osteoporosis is vibration training. This is based on bone formation or prevention of bone resorption through dynamic, i.e. constantly changing, force loading. Special vibration plates are used for the training, which generate vibrations with a frequency between 5 and 60 Hertz.

To prevent osteoporosis, however, a rather gentle training with low frequency and small movement impulses should be chosen. The basic effect of vibration training results from the so-called “Tonic Vibration Reflex”. This is caused by certain cells in the muscle register the change in length of the muscle caused by movement and send signals to the other muscle cells via a nerve loop.

These signals activate the muscle cells and lead to compensatory movements in order to maintain stability and an upright posture despite a moving base. These continuous small contractions of the muscles lead to increased strength and better muscle performance. They also lead to constant tension and pressure on the bones, which ultimately stimulates the strengthening of the bone structure. This type of osteoporosis prevention is particularly suitable for people who are no longer able to move sufficiently actively due to pain, illness or age.