Osteosperosis

[Anonymous.]

I have osteosperosis, which means my bones are fragile and could break which could mean death if it's like a spine or something. I am currently taking calcium and vitamin D but I'm not sure if it is helping or not. I know I should go to the doctor for that and I will this summer as that is the next time I will be able to see him next.

I was wondering if there was anything else that could help my bones from getting even weaker. I'm not saying medications, but like, does exercising help? I plan to exercise more anyways. I think drinking milk helps too. Is there a specific type of milk that would help the most? I need a little help here.

[MegaMadness]

Any products with calcium would help. I don't know about the milk. But I'd guess that any milk would be okay. And yes, gentle exercise should help.

[CompassionateSoul]

Gentle exercise can certainly help, that is, no excessive running (such as long sprints, or marathons, obviously), heavy weights will likely result in injury though. Simple things using quite a few muscles will help. I would say simple yoga would a good example, or even those home workouts that don't involve any weights.
Estrogen can affect the depletion of bone density, that is, a lack of it can increase depletion.

Lack of exercise, poor nutrition and smoking can also make the risk of density loss greater and are solely based on lifestyle.

As for nutrition, you will want to consume as much Calcium and Vitamin D that occur naturally in foods as you can get away with. Your body is still in growth mode, so now is the best time to fight it.
You can buy Milk that has added calcium, as you can with Cranberry juice and Orange juice. Cottage cheese and yogurt are also good sources. Cottage cheese isn't very fattening either and has a lot of protein, so it's a great snack on some crackers, etc and it's great on a warm baked potato! There aren't many other notable sources of calcium - some in soups and tofu prepared with calcium sulfate and other things that aren't commonly eaten!
Eggs, fish such as Salmon and Tuna (canned or cooked!), contain vitamin D, salmon has very large amounts per 75g. If you like salmon, it might be a good thing to have once a week. If you like sushi, the fish in that will give you plenty of vitamin D as well.
My sources were a provincial health site, sports nutrition book and NutritionData.com, and of course what I already know from working out often and personal experience.

I hope this helps! Take care.
You can PM me anytime.

[St.Vincent]

I would do LIGHT weight training (seriously, really light.. and contact a specialist obv. could be risky) and healthy food, lots of calcium and whatever the guy above me said. Oh yes, and yoga. Why did this guy take everything I was going to say and say it better?

</most useless post ever>

[Anonymous.]

I also had planned on going to the gym at least once or twice a week so I could get stronger. Is that alright or do you think I should not do that?

[CompassionateSoul]

I would check with a doctor, but if you do decide to tone up at the gym, do a low weight with high amounts of repetitions for each set. So, instead of lifting 20lb dumbbells 12 times, try 12.5 or 10lb dumbbells 25 times.
I suggest going 3 times a week, make sure your workout isn't longer than 40-60 minutes. Before you head off to the gym though, check with your doctor that it's safe, it should be. I imagine if you can carry a heavy backpack each day, you'd be fine with some some light weights 3 times a week. Milk is also a great post-workout drink to replenish what you used up in your work out, which is even better if you need the Calcium and Vitamin D as well!