Your diet and exercise routine directly affect how you feel on a daily basis. The better you treat your body, the better you will feel overall. As you age, you will start to feel the effects of the lifestyle you choose to lead.

One part of our bodies that requires our attention throughout our lives is our bones! Taking steps to improve your bone health can help your bones stay strong as you age.

Our AFC Urgent Care Knoxville team explains how to support your bone health below, so read on to learn more.

Why Do Bones Need to Be Strong?

Without our bones, we wouldn’t be able to do anything! Our bones provide our body with the structure it needs to stand, sit, hug our loved ones and jump for joy. In addition, your bones help protect your important organs from damage.

As you age, your bones can start to experience a loss of bone density. Did you know that you start to lose bone mass after the age of 30? Without incorporating more calcium and regular exercise into your daily routine, your bones can become weak. The weaker they get, the better chance you have of developing osteoporosis. When you have this condition, your bones can fracture and break simply from climbing a set of stairs or even just bending over.

Foods to Add to Your Diet

• Milk, cheese or dairy products
• Green, leafy vegetables
• Vitamin D-enriched foods like orange juice or cereals
• Nuts

How Does Exercise Support Strong Bones?

In addition to calcium, you also need to maintain a reliable exercise routine. Ideally, you should be getting at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise every week. This helps you maintain a proper weight as well as maintain a healthy body.

Your bones are constantly remodeling, even after you are done growing. In order to encourage them to grow in density, putting gentle pressure on them helps this process along. That’s where exercise comes into play! Gentle weight-bearing exercises like walking and jogging help support stronger bones throughout your life.

Indications of Weakening Bones

• Back pain
• Loss of height over time
• Frequent breaks or fractures
• Stooped posture

We can diagnose and treat broken bones! Stop by AFC Urgent Care Knoxville today.