A Sampling of New Research Regarding Fracture Risk Among Vegetarians and Vegans
A Large United Kingdom Study Correlates Vegetarian Diets with Higher Risk of Hip Fracture According to a new study published in BMC Medicine (Webster, et al. 2022), women who are vegetarian are more likely to experience hip fractures compared to those who eat meat. ...
Journey of a Lifetime
The John Muir trail is a 211-mile hike that spans from Yosemite to Mount Whitney in Southern California.
Trivial Pursuit for Bone Heads
How many bones are in the human body? a. 126b. 79c. 381d. 206 What is the name of the smallest bone in the body? a. The cuboidb. The patellac. The stirrupd. The scaphoid What is the main cause of osteoporosis prior to age 50? a. Lack of exercise throughout...
True or False? A Daily Serving of Prunes Helps Slow Bone Loss
The study of dried plums, (or prunes as they’re more commonly known), in relation to our skeletal health, is not new. I happen to enjoy eating prunes and was pleased to learn years ago that they have a protective effect on bone loss. Being the healthy skeptic that I...
DXA Dilemmas: Important Things to Know About Bone Density Screening
Last week, we had a particularly lively after-class discussion about dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) scans and their possible pitfalls. Since this is one of the primary ways our bone health is diagnosed and monitored, it is important to understand the basics of...
Osteoporosis Testing: There’s A New Kid In Town
There’s a new kid in town, but it seems not too many people have heard about it. In 2018, the FDA approved a new way of determining bone density: radiofrequency echographic multi spectrometry (REMS), more commonly known by the company that manufactures it, Echolight....
How Quickly Do We Become Unfit?
In my opinion, one of life’s injustices is how quickly all the effort we put into an exercise program begins to unravel during a period of prolonged inactivity. This was front and center in my mind recently, when I experienced a hip injury. I could no longer lift the...
Vitamin D: Do We Really Need More?
Vitamin D, (which is actually a hormone, not a vitamin), is critical for our musculoskeletal health. It helps the body absorb calcium from the small intestine, and therefore is essential for bone formation. However, since 2000, there has been an increase in research...
A Different Way to “Exercise” Your Bones? A Review of the Hype and the Science Behind Vibration Platforms
I get asked a lot of questions about the effectiveness of vibration platforms. Before I describe what these machines are, let’s take a quick visit to Bone Biology 101. Why and How Exercise Strengthens Our Bones Bone adapts to what is demanded of it – this is the...