Bad to the Bone

How do you show people that Bones are important? By wearing them on the outside... I am coming to work on October 31st (Halloween) dressed in a skeleton costume in the hope that the people I care about think about the health of their bones and joints.   You can help me make a fool out of myself by donating to Arthritis NSW.

We often speak about the importance of having healthy bones but what exactly do we mean by this? We all know that our skeleton is important for keeping us upright and protecting our organs but the extent that this can be achieved is limited by the quality of our bones, particularly how healthy and, in particular, how strong and dense they are. As we get older, our bones naturally start to get thinner making them easier to break and this, of course, brings a whole host of additional issues and concerns.

Although this is a natural process, there are a number of things that we can all do to ensure that our bones stay healthy and strong for as long we can. The earlier you start with this the better. Simple things like ensuring we get enough calcium each day (yep, that good old three serves of dairy); we need regular doses of vitamin D, so hop out into the sun occasionally when it’s safe to do from a sun protection point of view; and exercise. There’s always exercise! It doesn’t have to be a huge session with weights at the gym. A short walk every day is a great way to start.