Here’s some science i wish i knew before i was in my 30’s!
You can MAKE YOUR BONES STRONGER by doing and taking the right things–which we’ll cover buuuut your bone density is mostly locked in by the time you’re 30, when your growth plates are fused. The biggest changes happen by 18 in women and 25 in men. After that, density stays steady for a few decades and then usually starts to go down–unless you do the right things to stop it. This is ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT if you’re like me and one of your parents has osteoperosis or osteopenia. Thanks Eema.
Your genetics determine 70-80% of your bone density, but if you find out early enough that you’re on the low end, then you can work to maximize that final 20-30% before it’s too late.
Women have about 4 times greater risk, but men can also have issues. I found out last year that I have the bone density of a healthy… 120-year old.
So what can we do about it?
It comes down to Growth Stimuli + Building blocks.
Growth stimuli are all about putting STRESS on your bones.
Back In 1892 a german surgeon named Julius Wolff published a theory now known as Wolff’s law, the short version being that “bones will adapt to the degree of mechanical loading.”
Astronauts LOSE bone density because that loading drops to 0 in space. Studies show that fencers and tennis players GAIN bone density…in their dominant arms and legs.
Swimming, cycling, and running don’t help much. Gymnastics is great because in the moments when you land you’re loading the skeleton with many times your body weight.
Jujitsu and Football are good, lifting heavy weights is great.
A general rule of thumbs is to combine heavy weight lifting–especially big compound lifts like squats and deadlifts–with activities that involve a variety of fast movement that includes lots of jumping and landing that include jumping and landing– like basketball.
But your body can only BUILD bone if you’re consuming the right building blocks to do so. YOur mom was right about drinking your milk, which will cover in the next video– and soon a full one on the tubes.
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There IS still hope (for me)! The LIFTMOR study run in Australia found that, in older men and women with low bone density, lifting just twice a week, 30 minutes, 4 exercises (at 85% 1RM) was actually able to IMPROVE bone density by anywhere from 1.5%-6%, depending on region.
There are also some cool hacks / tricks that I’ve been researching that might be able to move the needle a bit more than the basic methods. Stay tuned!
✍️ NOTES:
Football might only be good because of the linked weightlifting
Weightlifting will NOT stunt kids growth. But corticosteroids like prednisone can. (Ventolin is better for asthma IF It works for you / your kid)
Some studies give the range of genetic heritability of bone density as 50-80% rather than 70-80% (PMID: 36176357)
Running isn’t so helpful because of how much the impact is absorbed by the feet, hips, and fascia, but sprinting can be beneficial for bones!
📚STUDIES - For a written transcript with all linked studies, check out my website
#science #health #nutrition #bonehealth #osteopenia #osteoporosis #stem #exercise