Bone and Joint Tutorial

The skeleton is comprised of over 200 bones and 100 joints. Exercise, nutrition, and stress management are all critical in the maintenance of their health. This system is a masterpiece of architecture and performs many functions:

• It supports the human body
• It protects internal organs (such as the brain, heart, and lungs)
• It contains and protects bone marrow
• It provides a structure by which muscles attached to it can effect motion.

Emotions such as anxiety, feelings of insecurity, sadness, and even lack of love in our lives plays an important role in skeletal system disorders. See A Guided Visualization to Healthy Bones and Joints for a method you can use to manage these feelings.

BONE DISEASE

OSTEOPOROSIS

There are over 600,000 fractures each year in the U.S. due to osteoporosis, which is brittleness in bone due to loss of bone density. Osteoporosis is more prevalent in women than men for two reasons:

• Women are generally smaller than men in stature; therefore, they have lighter and smaller bones.
• Women experience a precipitous drop in bone density during menopause due to the loss of female hormones.

About one-third of women who are past menopause have some level of osteoporosis.

TREATMENT RECOMMENDATIONS:

Several recommendations can be made to optimize bone density over a lifetime:

DIET

• A diet rich in calcium has been found to build bone density. Dairy is a common source (although some research has recently indicated excess animal protein leaches calcium from bone).
  Other sources include dark green vegetables, calcium-fortified foods and calcium supplements.
• Vitamin D is important for absorbing calcium. We get it quite naturally from sun exposure, but modern, indoor lifestyles prevent us from getting enough. Regular exposure to moderate amounts of sun is recommended depending on skin tolerance. Do not burn!!
  Vitamin D can also be supplemented in tablets or through fortification in food.
• Reduce excess alcohol intake and soft drink habits, which can decrease bone density.
• Quit smoking.

EXERCISE

• Weight-bearing activity across the lifetime is a must. Physical activity, especially during the teens and early twenties builds bone density, which is drawn on in later years.

STRESS

• Stress is thought to be related to osteoporosis in three different ways: First, stress can cause physiological changes in the body that may lead to osteoporosis. Second, poor lifestyle choices resulting from stress such as inadequate diet, inactivity, or sleep patterns may be factors. Third, the experience of osteoporosis itself causes depression and anxiety, which is stressful. All cause inflammation.
  None of us is immune to the stressors of life, but we can do something about the way we individually respond to those stressors (see The Root of Disease). This can greatly affect the role inflammation plays in osteoporosis and may be your primary defense against its effects.

JOINT DISEASE

ARTHRITIS

Arthritis may result from a physical injury, infection, genetics, or unknown reasons. There are over 100 different kinds, affecting an estimated 20 to 30 million Americans. It is the most common chronic illness in the U.S. and is typically characterized by pain, tenderness, and inflammation.

RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS

In rheumatoid arthritis (RA). the joints are attacked by an overactive immune system. Unfortunately, it can affect all joints, which can become swollen, deformed, and inflamed.

TREATMENT RECOMMENDATIONS:

Both arthritis and rheumatoid arthritis are inflammatory diseases. The inflammatory American diet and psychological stress are the primary areas of concern.
The following treatment recommendations can be made:

DIET

• Refined grains and sugars are inflammatory. Reduce or eliminate grains. Use whole sugars such as honey, maple syrup, and fruits.
• Polyunsaturated oils such as corn, safflower, and soybean are all inflammatory. They are most commonly found in deep-fried foods and salad oils. Substitute olive oil, which is the least inflammatory.
• Eliminate trans-fats.
• Consume Omega 3. Fish oil contains high amounts of Omega 3, which is anti-inflammatory. Also, grass-fed beef, free-range chicken and eggs, wild salmon, sardines, and herring are excellent sources.
• Ginger and turmeric have anti-inflammatory properties. Include them in your diet.
• Eliminate or moderate alcohol use, caffeine, and nicotine.

EXERCISE

• Excess body weight is hard on joints. Still, an exercise routine should be maintained. It should be modified, however, to sidestep severe pain in the affected joints. Swimming and biking are often good choices when done in moderation.

STRESS

• The recommendations above address diet and exercise, but may not be the most important treatments. Stress is another major concern. Even if stress was not a factor causing the illness, it always becomes one when trying to manage it. While we cannot always change external events in our lives that cause stress, we can change our response to these events. See A Guided Visualization to Healthy Bones and Joints for a practice you can utilize to manage stress.

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