Paltrow, 37, recently announced in her Internet newsletter GOOP that she was diagnosed with osteopenia, the precursor to osteoporosis, after suffering a severe shinbone (tibia) fracture. She also received other scary news from her doctors. Her vitamin D levels “turned out to be the lowest they had ever seen,” says the Academy Award-winning star of Shakespeare in Love and Iron Man, who was put on prescription strength vitamin D and told to spend more time in the sun.
What’s the link between the sunshine vitamin and bone health? “We see patients with severe vitamin D deficiency who don’t absorb calcium,” a mineral that’s one of the building blocks of bones, says Chad Deal, MD, head of the Cleveland Clinic’s Center for Osteoporosis and Metabolic Bone Disease. Vitamin D deficiency is now epidemic, affecting more than half of Americans. Since relatively few foods contain this crucial nutrient, ask your doctor if you need a supplement. Dr. Deal advises patients to aim for 800 to 1,000 i.u. per day. Some people need higher doses.
If you’re deficient, your body can’t make enough calcitriol, a hormone called “active vitamin D.” As a result, your body doesn’t absorb enough calcium, forcing it to draw on calcium stored in the skeleton, weakening existing bone and blocking formation of strong new bones.
It may surprise you that your skeleton isn’t a rigid, unchanging frame. Your body continually tears down sections of old bone and replaces them with new bone, a process called remodeling. Until age 25, bone is built faster than it’s broken down. After menopause, the opposite is true. Think of it like a retirement account: The more bone you “bank” when you’re young, the more reserves you’ll have to draw on when you’re older.
Since estrogen helps regulate bone health, hormones can be one reason why young women, such as Paltrow, may lose bone, adds Dr. Deal. “Being thin can be a factor, since estrogen is stored in body fat, so very little fat means less estrogen is stored. “ Other factors that can lower bone mass in young women include irregular or infrequent periods (less than six a year), smoking (which reduces estrogen), a poor diet and eating disorders.
Genes also play a major role, adds Dr. Deal. “The peak bone mass you accrue by age 25 is 70 percent determined by about 100 different genes.” A diet rich in vitamin D and calcium, regular weight-bearing exercise like jogging, walking or jumping rope, and avoiding smoking are the keys to preventing osteoporosis and osteopenia.
CONNECT THE DOTS
To bone up on prevention, visit the National Osteoporosis Foundation, which has exercise tips and a factsheet. Discuss your risk factors and how to protect your bone health with your doctor. National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases offers osteoporosis resources and information on calcium and vitamin D. For more resources and news on osteoporosis, visit MedlinePlus.
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