Bone loss is a serious health problem and Peoples Drug Mart in Port McNeill and Port Hardy are offering help and information.
“Many people lose bone mass when they lose weight,” said Phyllis Edwards, certified bone densitometry technologist and nutritionist with Bio-Imaging Osteoporosis Outreach Services. “This pattern for losing weight can jeopardize your bone health in later life, particularly if you already have risk factors for osteoporosis. This includes men.”
High protein diets have been suspect, yet protein is an essential component for building a strong and flexible bone matrix. Vegetarian diets that do not properly combine amino acids can also set the stage for rapid bone loss. The importance in a high protein diet seems to be in the food choices that are made to substitute carbohydrates.
“Studies are showing that if we replace carbs with high-calcium foods and foods high in anti-oxidants, bone mineral content and bone density can actually increase,” says Edwards. The study Edwards is referring to, also revealed that members of the test group following a high carb diet showed a decline in bone health over a 12-month period, while bone density in the higher-protein group increased in the lumbar spine and the femur.
Edwards has been conducting bone density screening for over 15 years, 11 of those spent travelling throughout western Canada with her mobile ultrasound testing unit. “I have seen many people reverse their diagnosis of osteoporosis,” says Edwards, ‘I see what works.”
Edwards will be sharing some of this information with clients at an up-coming Osteoporosis Awareness Clinic to be held at Peoples Drug Mart in Port Hardy on April 15th, and in Port McNeill on April 16th. Edwards will see individuals for an ultrasound bone density screening test and fracture risk assessment. Participants will also be able to talk to a pharmacist for a medications review. A fee applies and pre-booking is required by calling Peoples Drug Mart in both locations.