Posted on 13 July 2022

How do I make my bones stronger?

Making your bones stronger involves a combination of changes to your lifestyle, improvements in your diet, and ensuring you’re getting enough essential vitamins and minerals.

This guide breaks down the basics of better bone health and provides five ways to grow stronger bones.

Can I make my bone stronger?

Bones are tissues that, like your skin, are constantly changing. Your body builds new bone tissue to replace tissue that’s lost. Most of us reach peak bone density in our 30s, after which the strength of our bones begins to fall. Bone density then continues to decline as we get older.

The stronger your bones at 30, the stronger they’ll be for the rest of your life. Women are at a greater risk of losing bone mass and developing osteoporosis. Women are four times more likely than men to develop osteoporosis and suffer from fractures and breaks.

What factors affect bone health?

Everyone is different, and many factors affect our bone health.

These include:

• Age – your bone density peaks in your 30s and slowly falls after that. Those with strong and healthy bones in their 30s will likely have stronger bones throughout the rest of their lives. While bone density in your 30s is a good indicator of lifelong bone strength, several other factors will affect bone health.
• Gender – women are four times more likely than men to experience problems with their bone health, including osteoporosis. Bone density falls as we get older.
• Activity levels – levels of physical exercise are positively correlated with stronger bones. While activity levels naturally fall as you age, staying active is essential to maintaining stronger bones.
• Weight – you are at risk of poor bone health if you are underweight. People with a BMI of under 19 could have lower bone mass. 
• Eating disorders – eating disorders such as anorexia can significantly impact the strength of your bones. Over time, your bones can weaken, leaving you vulnerable to fractures and breaks.
• Diet – your diet is critical to stronger bones. You’ll need to ensure that you get the vitamins and minerals.
• Getting enough calcium and vitamin D – everyone should get enough vitamin D and calcium to improve bone health.
• Whether you take supplements – getting enough vitamin D is almost impossible during the winter, so many use supplements to help us. In addition to essential vitamins D and calcium, vitamin K, magnesium turmeric and others could positively impact bone health.
• If you take certain medications, certain prescription medications can negatively impact your bone health. While it’s essential you take them, you should be aware of the damage they can do to your bone.

How can you build stronger bones?

We should all do everything we can to protect bone health and build stronger bones. Here are some things that we can all do to help improve our bone health

Tip #1 – Get enough vitamin D

The recommended adult vitamin D dosage is 400 IU (10 μg) per day, says the NHS. However, it’s safe to take more. Adults should take no more than 100 micrograms (4,000 IU) of vitamin D daily, or they could experience health problems, says the NHS.

Vitamin D is well known as an essential vitamin for better bone health. Often called the sunshine vitamin, vitamin D helps to regulate the amount of calcium and phosphate in the body.

The body produces vitamin D after exposure to the sun. During the summer, we should all be able to get the vitamin D we need from outside.

However, during the autumn and winter (from October – March), it’s almost impossible to get the vitamin D we need naturally, says the NHS. They recommend that all adults take a supplement to fill the gap.

You can also get vitamin D in red meat, oily fish, and fortified foods (with added vitamin D).

Tip #2 – Get enough calcium

Every adult over 18 should get 700mg of calcium a day.Calcium plays a crucial role in keeping your body and bones healthy. It can help you to build bones and keep your teeth healthy. It can also ensure your blood clots usually and help keep your heartbeat regular.

Adults should be able to get all the calcium they need from a daily diet, but some people can struggle. Calcium supplements are an effective way to ensure you get the calcium that you need. However, there can be adverse side effects if you take too much calcium.

Some great sources of calcium include dairy such as milk, cheese and cream. You can also find calcium in surprising places, such as spinach, bread made with fortified flour and fish where you eat the bones.

Some vegetarians and vegans can find it hard to get the calcium they need and could find a supplement beneficial to their bone health.

Tip #3 – Give up smoking

Smoking is closely related to poor bone health. Scientists have discovered that smoking affects the body’s ability to absorb calcium, which, as we’ve seen, is critical to bone building.

Smoking can also affect oestrogen, which plays a vital role in bone formation.

There is no safe level of smoking. So, if you’re interested in stronger bones, then stub it out.

Tip #4 – Cut down on alcohol

Heavy alcohol consumption can also damage your bones, studies have found. The more you drink, the greater the impact. Even worse, once you’ve affected bone health, it’s difficult (and sometimes impossible) to reverse the damage.

It doesn’t mean you need to stop drinking altogether. Follow government guidelines and drink 14 or fewer units a week. That’s equivalent to six pints of 4% beer or six medium glasses of wine. Spread this out over the week, don’t drink it all in one go (however tempting that might be).

Tip #5 – Exercise regularly

Exercise, particularly weight-bearing resistance exercises, is the best for bone health, say experts.

Walking, hiking, jogging, cycling, and swimming will benefit your bones.

The key is to find something that you enjoy and to ensure that you do it regularly. The impact of exercise can be highly favourable in helping to build stronger bones, maintain muscle mass, and benefit your heart health.

Can you grow stronger bones?

Whatever our age and current condition, we can help to improve our bone health. While we may not be able to regenerate bone, we can maintain bone mass and improve bone health by eating a diet rich in vitamins and minerals, making some simple lifestyle changes and regularly exercising.

Our bone mass peaks in our 30s and then falls as we age. There’s no way to stop this process, but by following the information and advice, you can give your bones the best chance of staying healthy.

Why smarter supplements = stronger bones

Supplements can play a role in supporting your bone health. While you should be able to get all the vitamins and minerals you need from eating a healthy diet and getting enough sun, taking a supplement is an effective way for many of us to get what we need.

At Stronger Bones, we sell a handpicked selection of natural supplements to help you grow stronger bones. You can shop online and enjoy the lowest prices. If you want to save more, sign up for one of our subscription boxes or create your own!

Maintaining bone health is a lifelong challenge for us all. We’re trying to make it a little easier….