Keeping your bones healthy and strong is an important goal for most of us, especially post-menopausal women, who are at the highest risk for osteoporosis and thus potentially at risk for dangerous and painful bone fractures. Given that one out of every 3 women over 50 and one out of every 5 men over 50 live with osteoporosis, that means that there’s an awful lot of us who are trying our best to stay strong, upright, and fracture-free. Moreover, the projected burden of osteoporosis is expected to almost double in the US population by 2050. So we should all understand and embrace whatever new insights or new clinical trial results that arise, so we can lower our risk for this debilitating and all too common condition. For some good overviews of where things stand with the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of osteoporosis, grab a glass of milk and look here and here.

Another all too common condition that challenges many of us is obesity. While being too small or thin can increase your risk of osteoporosis, so, too, can obesity. And while you may be thankful that important new weight loss medications are now available to reduce both obesity and the negative health effects of some of the chronic conditions associated with it, does this weight loss affect your risk of osteoporosis? There is some concern that both muscle loss and bone loss can result from using these medications, so efforts to maintain muscle and bone mass need to be utilized when taking these drugs. A brand new study, however, suggests that weight loss can be achieved while maintaining bone mass if you follow a specific diet and accompany that diet with physical activity. Published in JAMA Network Open, this study looked at the impact of a healthy lifestyle weight-loss intervention on age-related bone deterioration. 924 participants over the age of 65 were randomized into 2 groups: One followed a Mediterranean diet with no limits on portions and no special exercise assigned. The other group followed an “energy-reduced” Mediterranean diet (essentially the same approach to eating as the usual Mediterranean diet but with portion control, thereby eliminating 30% of the calories). Previous weight loss studies involving diet alone have produced results that reduced bone density, but in this new study, there was no such reduction. In fact, women in the “energy-reduced” group saw significantly stronger bones at year 1 and year 3 of the study. Given that the Mediterranean diet is nutrient-rich in foods that promote bone health (nuts, dairy, healthy fats, etc), plus the addition of extra physical activity which is recommended as one way to forestall the effects of osteoporosis, it’s no surprise the results of this approach were positive for both weight loss and bone protection. To read more about this study, pour on the olive oil and click here.

And speaking of exercise, those of us trying to prevent or respond to an osteoporosis diagnosis know that exercise, especially weight-bearing exercise, can strengthen bones no matter your age. While you should always check in with your physician to make sure your bones are up to the challenge, a strengthening and weight-bearing exercise routine should be an essential part of your osteo-beating strategy. For some ideas of simple props to have on hand for this bone-strengthening and balance-protecting strategy, look here. And for one woman’s journey to build up her bones with challenging weight-bearing routines, grab a free weight and click here.