In her own kind of logic, my Little Pop Tart first brought the correlation of bone density to my attention, the latter a point of contention at the Petras home. In a synopsis, she said that I was so dense I was immune to listening, following instructions, and when I did pay attention, I was immune to comprehension—something in that order. It all sounded like gobbledygook to me.
Then it hit me like a ton of beer kegs: that better bone density should correlate to a better immune system.
I am not going to give you a bunch of medical terms such as senescence, hemoiepathic stem cells, sarcopenia or lymphocytes to show how smart I am. No, I am rather just going to cut to the case: Loss of bone density reduces the strength of our immune system.
Since our white blood cells originate from stem cells inside our bone marrow, it makes sense that reduction of bone density also happens simultaneously within the core of the bone, which is the spongy stuff called bone marrow.
Bone loss comes as the natural process as we age. Women by the 30th year will experience a one-percent loss of bone matter a year and by post-menopause that figure can reach three to five percent, often resulting in the fragile condition called osteoporosis. Men have thicker bones than women have, but also experience bone loss and osteoporosis.
Besides osteoporosis, fragility and a weakened immune system, bone loss also leads to a loss of strength, balance and posture. It would make good sense then to take preventative measures to maintain healthy bones. Most scientific studies state that bone loss cannot be reversed but also claim it can be slowed or even halted with load-bearing exercises such as walking, dancing, tai chi and resistance exercises.
I am not going to try to impress you by rattling off the Latin names of muscles like biceps brachii, pectoralis major, gluteus medius. Let’s just say that the big muscles are attached to the big bones and the big bones are the ones you want to pick a bone with. Like the ones in your upper legs, arms and ribs, and they can be worked to maintain bone strength and density with progressive overload exercises like dead lifts, squats, leg presses and lunges. The arm bones and rib cages are also bone marrow sources and can be exercised with a variety of resistance exercises.
Remember to seek approval for this kind of training only after given the ok by a doctor and always under the guidance of a certified trainer and remember to start light at first and then work up to more resistance, gradually.
Keep in mind to perform moderate aerobic activities 30 minutes a session three times a week. Studies indicate moderate aerobic exercise does enhance your immune system. Caveat—too much exercise can impair your immune system, another reason you should train under professional supervision.
Nutrition is also key to your bone health, especially calcium and vitamin D. I prefer my source of calcium from low fat yogurt flavored with natural fruit. I also consume plenty of green stuff like spinach and broccoli. The best source of Vitamin D is the sun, 15 minutes of exposure a day. I know I don’t have to warn you about too much sun exposure. Other good sources include yogurt, salmon, orange juice and enriched cereal.
I am not going to end this topic with the typical bio like telling you I have a Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism from West Liberty University and that I am a certified personal fitness trainer with the International Sports Science Academy nor a senior fitness specialist with ISSA nor a Level 1 CrossFit coach nor have four Immunology Coursera certifications from Rice University and that if I were being paid by word count, I could list ten more dollar’s -worth of ten-cent word certifications.
I am going to tell you to please, please take every precaution available to you regarding communicable diseases, including exercise and nutrition and if you haven’t yet been vaccinated, please do so.
