So I got the chance to attend an interesting lecture by Dr. Coles L’Hommeieu on Wednesday night. He is an orthopedic surgeon and was talking about arthiritis and hip and knee replacements. St. Anthony’s hospital hosted the event and as a parting gift for everyone they had these tasty cookies that were shaped like bones. Well, at least my son said that the cookie was tasty, because he ate it all before I could have any.

The cookie got me thinking about the importance of bone health as we age. There are several easy steps that we can do to help boost our bone health!

• Try to eat 3 servings of calcium a day. (Milk, yogurt, cheese, and broccoli are all good sources of calcium)
• Get enough Vitamin D. Your body creates Vitamin D when it is exposed to sunlight, but you can also get it from dairy products, fish, and eggs.
• Work out your bones. Try to get 30 minutes of moderate activity in on most days of the week. Walking or jogging is a great way to build up bone strength in the legs and spine. Pushups help build up arm bone strength.
• Modify your lifestyle. Moderate caffeine and alcohol use and eliminating smoking can improve bone health.

So I am going to take my own advice right now and put down my coffee and get a little exercise in before my next patient comes in!