Your child’s bone health is one of the most important aspects of their early development. The health of their bones will have a massive impact on their overall quality of life. Children develop close to 40 percent of their bone mass between the ages of 9-14; they reach 90 percent of their peak bone mass by ages 18-20.
Bone is a living tissue that needs to be constantly nourished with nutrient and turned over with regular deposits and withdrawals. The majority of nutrient deposits take place during adolescence and childhood.
Building Health Bones
What makes healthy bones is good nutrition delivered by a proper diet. There are several nutrients that are primarily responsible for the health of bones:
- Vitamin D
- Magnesium
- Vitamin K
- Calcium
Vitamin D
Being exposed to the sun can actually trigger vitamin D production. But this ability’s effectiveness changes according to a person’s pigmentation, the season, and geography of the land. The best way to get vitamin D is to eat vitamin D rich foods:
- Fatty fish
- Egg yolks
- Fortified milk
- Fortified orange juice
- Leafy green vegetables
Magnesium
Magnesium is a trace mineral that can be found in a variety of different foods:
- Almonds
- Spinach
- Edamame
- Avocado
- Black beans
- Whole-wheat bread
- Peanut butter
- Kidney beans
Vitamin K
Vitamin K is actually a bit more difficult to come by because it isn’t in a wide variety of foods. The best vitamin K rich foods are leafy green vegetables:
- Greens
- Spinach
- Kale
- Turnip greens
- Cabbage
- Broccoli
- Spinach
Calcium
Calcium is probably the mineral that people most associate with bone health. Low amounts of calcium can lead to osteoporosis and other bone diseases later in life. Thankfully calcium is present in quite a few foods:
- Milk
- Cheese
- Yogurt
- Broccoli
- Almonds
- Turnip greens
- Figs
- Tofu
- chocolate
