A Plant Based Diet Reduces The Risk For Osteoporosis
Studies show that consuming a plant based diet reduces the risk for osteoporosis, on the contrary a diet high in animal products increases the risk for such.
Osteoporosis is characterized by a decrease in bone mass and bone structure deterioration. It is estimated that 10 million Americans have osteoporosis. Women over the age of 50 (or post menopausal) are at increased risk. Osteoporosis is a very important health concern, since it leads to bone fractures and disability.
Over the years we have heard that to increase bone density we have to consume more dairy (due to the high calcium levels dairy contains), but now we know that dairy creates and acidic condition in the blood. The body tries to compensate this acidity by adding a buffer which is calcium and this calcium is extracted from the bones. So bone density is decreased by this constant compensation.
A plant based diet reduces this acidity so calcium stays in the bones and the density remains within healthy levels. Studies on different populations reveal that those consuming the least dairy products have much lower incidence of osteoporosis than those countries where more dairy is consumed.
Tags: 10 million Americans, calcium, dairy, fractures, osteporosis, plant based diet
