Strengthening Bones for a Lifetime

Bone health is a cradle-to-grave issue. According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), one of the main causes behind osteoporosis, the "silent disease" afflicting more than 40 million Americans with weakened bones, is inadequate optimal bone growth in childhood and adolescence. As a result, bones don't reach ideal peak bone mass. A consumer education piece developed by NIH's National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS) said: "The bone mass attained in childhood and adolescence is an important determinant of lifelong skeletal health. The health habits your kids are forming now can make, or literally break, their bones as they age."

Consisting of collagen and crystals of calcium phosphate mineral, the salad days of bones' life cycle come early. Cells called osteoclasts and osteoblasts are also part of the composition and are responsible for bone remodeling, where osteoclasts remove old bone (bone resorption) and osteoblasts build new bone (bone formation). Until our early 20s, bone formation outpaces bone resorption. Bone mass may remain stable or decrease slightly for years—that's partly due to diet and physical activity—until an age-related decline begins sometime after midlife.

According to NIH, environmental factors can determine anywhere from 10 percent to 50 percent of bone mass. The natural products industry has a number of options to help Americans of all ages improve their chances for a fracture-free future.

Next: Nutraceutical Ingredients