Bone Broth: Sip Your Way to Strong Bones!
Throughout history, bone broth has been used for it’s health-promoting properties. It is traditionally prepared by slowly simmering animal bones and connective tissue and is an especially good choice for anyone with bone health concerns.
It stands to reason that simmering bones for a long time will release many minerals needed by our own bones. While bone broth is not a significant source of calcium, it contains a number of bone-supportive minerals such as silica, sulphur, magnesium and potassium in an easy to digest form. It is also excellent for reducing inflammation and for improving joint health – two excellent goals for anyone with osteopenia or osteoporosis.
Let’s take a look at just a few of the bone-friendly minerals found in bone both:
Silica – helps ready bones to be hardened by calcium
Sulfur – thought to help grow new bone (Aljonani, 2020)
Magnesium – a big part of bone and easily leached out of bones if levels are low in the body (Castiglioni et al., 2013).
Potassium – is the alkalizing mineral shown to reduce urinary excretion of calcium (Ha et al., 2020).
Can drinking bone broth improve bone mineral density?
Bone broth is an excellent source of collagen. In a recent study of postmenopausal women with age-related loss of bone mineral density, those who were given a collagen peptide product experienced a significant increase in bone mineral density (Konig et al., 2018).
As collagen is cooked down in a long-simmering bone broth, gelatin is released. Gelatin is a jelly-like substance known to strengthen connective tissue and cartilage – which may result in less falls! (Nourish by WebMd, n.d.)
Both collagen and gelatin are believed to improve gut health. Stong bones require a strong digestive system to absorb and utilize minerals and other nutrients. Poor digestion can lead to poor absorption and weak bones.
Sipping on bone broth can also help with sleep and relaxation both of which are helpful for maintaining strong bones. Bone broth contains many relaxing amino acids such as glycine in a highly absorbable form. As a reminder, amino acids are simply the building blocks of protein.
Quality bone broth can be made at home with a bit of patience. There are also many online companies making bone broth. It can also be found in the frozen section of local health food stores.
Who should avoid bone broth?
Anyone with Mast Cell Activation Syndrome
Anyone with chronic migraines should consider the possibility that bone broth may trigger in people with high sensitivity to glutamates
Leave a comment and let me know if you’ve ever made bone broth at home. How did it go?
Disclaimer
The included information is not meant to or should not be used to replace or substitute medical treatment, recommendations, or the advice of your physician or health care provider. The information contained within is strictly for educational purposes and is based on evidence-based nutrition. If you believe you have a medical problem or condition, please contact your physician or healthcare provider.
References
Aljohani, H. (2020) Methylsulfonylmethane: possible role in bone remodeling (dissertation). The University of Maryland Baltimore. https://archive.hshsl.umaryland.edu/handle/10713/12968
Castiglioni, S., Cazzaniga, A., Albisetti, W., & Maier, J. A. (2013). Magnesium and osteoporosis: current state of knowledge and future research directions. Nutrients, 5(8), 3022–3033. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu5083022
Ha, J., Kim, S. A., Lim, K., & Shin, S. (2020). The association of potassium intake with bone mineral density and the prevalence of osteoporosis among older Korean adults. Nutrition research and practice, 14(1), 55–61. https://doi.org/10.4162/nrp.2020.14.1.55
König, D., Oesser, S., Scharla, S., Zdzieblik, D., & Gollhofer, A. (2018). Specific Collagen Peptides Improve Bone Mineral Density and Bone Markers in Postmenopausal Women-A Randomized Controlled Study. Nutrients, 10(1), 97. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu10010097
Nourish by WebMd (n.d.) Health benefits of gelatin. Retrieved August 30, 2022. https://www.webmd.com/diet/health-benefits-gelatin#1