About Families Online

Feature Articles for July 2003

By now, nearly everyone is aware of the importance of a calcium rich diet. Drinking and eating foods enriched with calcium is a great start, but if the calcium is not absorbed through the body, Rickets can develop.

Rickets is a disorder involving softening and weakening of the bones in children. After eating or drinking foods that contain calcium, such as milk, yogurt and ice cream, the body must then absorb it through the intestines. Having a diet rich in milk and milk products is important to building calcium, but calcium cannot do the job alone. This is where vitamin D enters the equation.

Vitamin D
Vitamin D is essential in the absorption process. It can be introduced into the body in a variety of ways. Consuming foods that contain vitamin D is one way, but the body will also produce vitamin D when skin is exposed to sunlight. It is important to remember, however, that too much exposure to the sun can cause the skin to burn. Therefore, a sunscreen is always recommended. Sunburns can result in skin cancer, so using an appropriate SPF sunscreen is very important.

Some juices and other foods may be fortified with vitamin D. By checking and comparing nutrition labels and purchasing those which contain it, parents can ensure their children are consuming enough vitamin D through their diet.

Exercise
Exercise is important as well. Studies show that regular, weight-bearing exercise–such as walking–helps to build strong bones. Combined with a balanced diet, exercise does the following:

• Helps make hormones that protect bones.
• Generates electrical activity that promotes bone growth and repair.
• Boosts the flow of blood and nutrients to bones.

By choosing a healthy diet and implementing an exercise program, a substantial supply of calcium can be stored. This is essential in building up the “bone bank.” That bank then provides calcium for growing and rebuilding bones, as well as providing the required calcium to perform other body functions. Healthy bones are much less likely to break. In addition to giving bones what they need now, the bone bank is storing calcium that will be used through the golden years. People who do not store enough calcium when young are at higher risk for getting diseases such as osteoporosis later in life.

Osteoporosis is a disease that can make bones so fragile that they can break from the stress of merely bending over. People with osteoporosis frequently have a hunched-over appearance. Unfortunately osteoporosis may not be diagnosed until a person suffers one or more bone fractures. By this time, it is usually too late to undo the bone damage.

Calcium plus vitamin D, plus weight-bearing exercise equals stronger, healthier bones. Begin making deposits in your bone bank now! You’ll enjoy dividends today, and years from now!

Adapted from American Academy of Pediatrics. Calcium: Building Your Bone Bank available at www.medem.com.

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) was founded in 1930, and now has approximately 55,000 members in the United States, Canada and Latin America. Members include pediatricians, pediatric medical subspecialists, and pediatric surgical specialists. More than 36,000 of them are board-certified and called Fellows of the American Academy of Pediatrics (FAAP).

More than 40 committees develop many of the AAP's positions and programs, including such varied interests as injury and poison prevention, children with disabilities, sports medicine, nutrition, and child health financing. The AAP and its member pediatricians dedicate their efforts and resources to the health, safety and well-being of infants, children, adolescents, and young adults.