Environmental Nutrition

Unlike the static human skeletons that commonly hang in biology classrooms, your bones are continually being broken down and rebuilt. In fact, your entire skeleton is replaced about every 10 years. In addition to exercise, about 20 different nutrients help prevent the weakening of bones that leads to osteoporosis. We review nutrients you're more than likely falling short on and where to get them.

Calcium

Calcium has the strongest research evidence of any nutrient for its role in supporting healthy bones, according to a 2016 position paper from the National Osteoporosis Foundation.

Requirement for adults: 1,000-1,300 mg (milligrams)

Sources: Dairy foods, fortified foods (such as orange juice, tofu and soy milk), fish with edible bones (sardines, canned salmon), bok choy and kale.

Vitamin D

Vitamin D helps you absorb calcium from food and supplements. Without vitamin D, less than 10 percent of the calcium you consume is absorbed.

Requirement for adults: 600-800 International Units. However, a 2014 analysis by Canadian experts and a March 2015 analysis by U.S. experts, both published in Nutrients, report that the Institute of Medicine made a significant statistical error in calculating vitamin D needs, making current recommendations too low. Ask your doctor to test your vitamin D blood level; it should be at least 32 ng/mL to support bone health.

Sources: Fortified dairy foods, egg yolks, salmon and tuna. To assess how much vitamin D you're getting from sun exposure daily, use the dminder smartphone app (dminder.ontometrics.com), which vitamin D expert Michael F. Holick, Ph.D., M.D. helped develop.

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