| THE PARADOX OF FOOTBALL |
 They made headlines in the U.S. statements, recently released in Newsweek, by Walter Willet, head of nutrition at the School of Health Public University of Harvard. " Countries with higher calcium intakes," said the scholar, "have higher rates of fracture, not the lowest" . The great lovers of milk and cheese, Norwegians, Swedes, Americans have an incidence of fractures among the population of many times higher than that recorded in mainland China, where you do not drink milk. So, Italy and Singapore, France and Japan, have the same incidence rates of fractures, although there are no tables of dairy products in Asia. It means that bone health depends not only on the amount of calcium we take, but by other factors, nutritional, behavioral, and other related hormones and immunity. Besides the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (February 2003), Graham Colditz, an epidemiologist at Harvard Medical School in Boston, presented the results of an investigation involving over 70 thousand post-menopausal women followed for 18 years with careful checks on the diet, use of supplements and bone fractures occurred. The conclusions were irrevocable: " Neither milk nor a high calcium diet protects bone . On the contrary, an adequate intake of vitamin D reduces the risk of fractures." conclusions, which, among other things, may explain the mystery of the (few) positive studies in favor of football they've always used together with calcium and vitamin D: the beneficial effect could therefore depend on the Vitamin and from football . Now a new element to be included in the mosaic. A German work, published more recently in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, explains that there is a relationship between acidity and calcium in the bones set. A suspicion is not new, but now researchers Dortmund give a definitive proof, and decided to study children and adolescents and eliminating any possible misunderstanding on the proper functioning of the kidneys of subjects in the study: young people under 18 are presumed to have them in good shape. the 229 children studied for four years, it was demonstrated with computed tomography, that whoever had a higher dietary acid load had a lower bone mineral content. addition, this study has documented that "long-term intake of calcium has no significant effect on bone." But what is the mechanism by which we realize the loss of calcium? A diet rich in animal protein (meat and also in the cheese) is strongly acidifying and forces the kidneys to produce a surplus of buffering agents. In this work are subtracted calcium and other minerals from the bones. Hence the " paradox: an excess of calcium introduced a diet rich in cheese can have the ultimate effect of excessive calcium loss from bones. But the system for resolving the paradox is: increase the amount of basic foods that can buffer the acidity. (...) [Adapted from The Health of the Republic - February 2, 2006 - Francis Bottaccioli] Football is not penalty taken in the form of supplements or supplements, does not serve to strengthen the bones. It only works when taken with food.  against osteoporosis are many women who take calcium supplements and vitamins, convinced that it is a good way to increase bone density. But these substances, taken in pill form, are not as effective. The only remedy to strengthen the bones and think well before putting into practice the very young, a proper lifestyle. This was confirmed by the world experts gathered Osteoporosis in Toronto, Canada, for the last World Congress of International Osteoporosis foundation (Ifo). According to a study presented by Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, people taking calcium from supplements had a bone of lower quality than those who take it with food, or combining pills and foods rich in Football. Serve as little supplement their diet with vitamin D, essential for bone metabolism when the body does not have available a sufficient supply of calcium, as reported by Belgian and Dutch experts at the conference. "The stock, which makes it resistant to bone fractures, is better integrated if it comes from food, mainly milk and cheese, but also dried fruits, cereals, pulses, meat and oily fish, "says Lorenzo Panella, head of operational rehabilitation of Humanitas IRCCS Rozzano. The effect of a proper diet is most evident at a young age, when bone metabolism is more oriented to building tissue, as the expert adds: "The bone is the body's calcium reserve: when you need it for some metabolic reaction was demobilized from the fabric by cells called osteoclasts, and when there is enough, however, is integrated in the skeleton by osteoblasts. Until 40 years prevailing osteoblast activity after bone metabolism is reversed is slowly consumed. "For this reason also vitamin D, which promotes the construction activity, are useful only if there are enough building blocks, or calcium ions. But food is not all: the very important ' physical activity, which directly affects the bone structure. At the conference a group of Canadian physicians in Ohio presented the results of a study which has examined quality and bone density in children between 8 and 18 years, both sexes. The young people who play sports have a bone of better quality and more dense, particularly during adolescence. Start is not enough, we must also be persistent: a group of doctors at the University of Turku in Finland has occurred on 142 girls who have been practicing this sport for four years who have stopped physical activity has accumulated over the years that followed, less calcium in the bones of those who continued to train. "The quality of training is essential," said Panella. "You have to play sport at least three times a week, focusing on aerobic work, namely that increases heart rate and tissue oxygenation. It 'just the increased oxygen supply to the bone, which improves the quality. With less three times a week do not get the desired result. " Who is always sedentary time was nevertheless up to 40 years to think again. "And 'that the age at which the benefits in terms of bone structure are beginning to vanish for physical activity, but we must not forget that older people benefit from a little' exercise. In this case strengthens the muscles and increase the flexibility, two key features to support a weak and skeletal fractures in order to avoid "claims Panella. [Adapted from Panorama 22/6/2006 Year XLIV N. Directed P.178 25. Peter Calabrese - Daniela Ovadia] |
Sole24Ore