Osteoporosis is a decrease in bone mass; it affects one-third of all women by the age of seventy. But younger people can be affected as a result of the body being unable to absorb and utilize nutrients properly (or during pregnancy, especially if you become pregnant frequently). Menopause can affect magnesium and calcium levels because of the reduction in estrogen, triggering a loss of bone mass; so pay attention to calcium and magnesium needs from the age of forty. Maintaining healthy level of these minerals will prepare and strengthen you in readiness for menopause, as well as supporting kidney function. A large meat intake will inhibit calcium absorption. Meat also contains large amounts of phosphorus, which ruins the calcium-phosphorus balance by inhibiting calcium levels. Any prolonged cortisone treatment will also take its toll; cortisone inhibits bone formation and decreases absorption of calcium in the stomach. Those with rheumatoid arthritis are often treated with steroids and may suffer from osteoporosis later on.
Early warning signs include broken nails, leg cramps, joint pain, and restless behavior. More advanced cases will exhibit loss of spinal movement and a decrease in height. There are machines able to measure bone density and structure without the use of radiation or a body scan. The test cost is minimal and involves placing your bare foot on a plate that is connected to a computer for data processing. The diagnosis is printed out in two minutes.
-Eat and drink foods rich in calcium and magnesium.
-Cut out coffee and tea.
-Drink superfood on waking and at bedtime.
-Drink nettle leaf tea at bedtime, as bone mass is decreased the most while one sleeps. Pau d’arco inner bark also contains high levels of calcium and relieves inflammatory problems, as does black cohosh root.
-Herbs to help maintain hormone levels at menopause include dong quai root, chaste tree berry, black cohosh root, wild yam tuber, hop strobilus, fennel seed, and many more.
-Kidney cleanses will help balance calcium and phosphorous levels better, and estrogen output will remain balanced.
-Hormone Replacement Therapy has been shown to increase the likelihood of osteoporosis by causing mineral deficiencies that, in turn, promote hormone deficiencies.
This Osteoporosis Treatment article is taken from :
The complete home guide to herbs, natural healing, and nutrition / Jill Rosemary Davies.
