UNDERSTANDING AGING BONES AND MUSCLE CARE

Bones provide the strength and support to our bodies. They provide protection for our vital organs and are essential for blood cell production as well as for calcium metabolism. Without bones, we are unable to move. With aging, these functions become impaired as bones become more fragile and less able to perform their mechanical functions, as well as the metabolic functions because calcium stores are often depleted.

Our bones through the ages..

Our bones constantly undergo a process of remodeling through a cycle of bone absorption and bone formation, that is, our bodies naturally removes old bone tissues while replacing it with new ones. At young age, bones are replaced much more quickly than it is lost, making our bones stronger and denser. Around the age of 30, peak bone mass is reached and our bodies replace bones about as much as it loses. But later at this stage, our bones begin to become less dense, making them more fragile, brittle, and prone to breaking. This is why fractures are common among the elderly.Around the age of 40, less bone is replaced than is formed, causing the bones to become thinner and weaker, increasing the risk for osteoporosis.

Consequences of aged bones

• As the bone mineral density of bones decreases, bones become less dense and more fragile, and therefore, become susceptible to breaking or fracture during falls.
• As bones lose mass, osteoporosis develops and can lead to fractures of the back bones, hips and wrists.

How Physical Activity Helps in Maintaining Our Bone Health?

IT’S EITHER TO USE IT OR LOSE IT…

TheWolff’s Law  states that bone will adapt to the stress placed on it… if you continually perform activities, such as lifting heavy objects, your bones will adapt and strengthen over time to better support this task. Likewise, if you don’t place any demands on a bone, the bone tissue will weaken over time…

This becomes a problem for the elderly who become weak due to old age and unable to perform exercises.

As vibration is a form of stress, can mechanical vibration provide the necessary stress for bone health?...early research is still exploring this question

The integrity of our muscles and bones depends largely on the amounts of physical activities that we do and is largely affected by inactivity or sedentariness, especially in frail and elderly individuals. As such, there’s a need to recreate the physical stress that our bones need to promote bone and muscle strength.

High-frequency, low-magnitude vibration therapy can deliver sufficient stress to bones as physical activity does and has been studied for possible effects on bone strength, with mixed and early-stage results.

• Early studies have explored whether low-intensity vibration may help limit muscle and bone loss caused by physical inactivity, but the evidence is not yet conclusive.

• Fracture healing should always be managed by a doctor. Never use a massage gun on or near a fracture without medical advice.

As it delivers high-frequency mechanical vibration, the Recovapro massage guns are designed to ease muscle tension and soreness. They are not medical devices and are not intended to treat fractures, osteoporosis, or any other medical condition. If you have osteoporosis or a fracture, speak to your doctor before using one.