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1997, Heather M. Ross (Pacific Continental Wellness)
The key to healthy bone structure begins in adolescence with the right diet and plenty of exercise, according to research underway in Canada.
At the University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, scientists are studying the link between proper diet and exercise in adolescence, and the onset of osteoporosis later in life.
Those researchers have learned that during four peak growth years in adolescence, a youngster will gain almost a third of her total adult bone mineral complement. "[In] these four years a girl would lay down as much bone mineral as most women will lose in their entire adult life," explained Dr. Don Bailey.
Doctors have been saying for years that it is important for women of all ages to drink a lot of milk because of its high calcium content. Bailey and the others on his team were shocked to discover that so few of the young women in their study were getting enough calcium in their diets.
"When you get forty-five percent of your twelve-year-old girls not meeting the recommended dietary allowance, that's a concern," says Bailey.
Dr. Heather McKay, another researcher on the project, notes that not only do the diets of these young women not contain enough beneficial foods but also include elements that are detrimental to acquisition of bone mineral. Caffeine and tobacco both work against calcium and adolescents consume them in large quantities.
"They're not drinking milk, they're drinking soft drinks, and they're not eating sometimes," says McKay. "And it's not that they're low income
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