J.Michael Manning
Matthew,
You are right in asking these questions, but I would like to redirect your logic. First of all, your MD probably could not give you more than a generic answer, simply because they do not study nutrition as it is not typically required as a part of their professional practice. For years, doctors have been telling people, mostly women, that to
prevent bone loss, to increase the amount of calcium in their diet.
They suggest dairy as the perfect source of the calcium. On the other hand, any Naturopath doctor could explain to you that
calcium deficiencies do not result from a lack of dairy intake. Ironically, even though the U.S. is one of the top consumers in the
world of dairy products, we also rank very near the top of the list in
osteoporosis. The incidence of osteoporosis is just as high in other countries with a
large consumption of dairy. England and Sweden follow closely behind
the United States with cases of osteoporosis. They also follow closely
behind the United States in dairy consumption. Dairy
calcium has two major flaws that actually increases and worsens osteoporosis! First, dairy calcium contains little or no magnesium.
In order to absorb calcium into the bones, the human body needs
an equal amount of magnesium. Dairy products do not have enough
magnesium to accomplish this task. However, magnesium is found in
abundance in dark green leafy vegetables,
something that most Americans eat very little of unless they are
vegetarians. So think spinach salad.
Second, dairy contains too much protein.
Another potential source of the problem can be the
overconsumption of protein. That is due to the acidic residue left
behind from protein metabolism. Dietary protein causes the blood to become acidic. The human body needs an alkaline
environment in order to function in a healthy way, and that is
especially true of endurance athletes. To neutralize
this acid and restore pH balance, the body uses its largest source of calcium: the
skeletal system. The calcium in bones is the perfect neutralizer to the
acids in protein. For example, if you take in 1000-1500 mg of
high-protein calcium daily, the average person will still lose 4% bone
mass each year! The body actually consumes its own skeleton to
neutralize the acid found in protein. So where do we find calcium that is balanced with magnesium and is also low in protein?
In green vegetables! Vegetables such as spinach, kale, and
broccoli contain large amount of calcium, a good balance of magnesium,
and low levels of acidic protein. The molecular structure of
chlorophyll, the green blood of plant life, contains the magnesium
molecule. And we find that in countries where dairy consumption is low
and green vegetable consumption is high, the incidence of osteoporosis
is low. China and Japan for example, have very low rates of osteoporosis and they consume very little dairy. Calcium is not the only factor in the Osteoporosis equation.
Calcium loss can also be caused by hereditary factors, intake of
salt, high-fat foods, caffeine, and tobacco products. Also, lack of
weight-bearing exercise also increases the risks of osteoporosis. Weight training (cycling is not a weight bearing activity) will
stimulate bone density, but only if you are providing your body with
all of the necessary ingredients. Now...if you are unwilling to eat green leafy vegetables on a regular basis, you might consider calcium supplements. Just be sure that it is from a variety of different sources and is combined with Vitamin D3 , Vitamin C, and magnesium for better absorption.
J.Michael Manning
CycleOne Coaching
"Athletic Excellence is our Business"
From: MathewB@dowa.com
To: obra@list.obra.org
Date: Wed, 10 Sep 2008 07:28:30 -0700
Subject: [OBRA Chat] broken bones
Morning,
This question is probably more for my doctor but I thought
id toss it out to obra as well.
Seems in the last 5+/- years every time I hit the deck I come
out with a broken bone. Ive been active in sports my whole life and have
never broken a bone until just the last few years ago. Now 35 im going on
3 breaks.
Back in the day I used to drink a few pints of milk a day
and now I barely get much at all. am I dairy calcium short?
Any thoughts/insight would be appreciated.
Cheers,
mathew braun
d
o w a
319
sw washington street.
#200
portland,
or 97204
p: 503.226.6950
f:
503.273.9192
d:
503.419.0906
m:
503.808.0495
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