Exercisers Urged to Protect Bones Via Nutrients
Adequate vitamin D and calcium may prevent stress fractures

(HealthDay News) -- If you want to skip being sidelined for months because of a painful stress fracture, be sure you're getting enough calcium and vitamin D.

Experts believe that most people don't get adequate amounts of either nutrient from their diets and so recommend supplements.

Even young, healthy, active women -- Navy recruits, in fact, -- were 25 percent more likely to sustain a stress fracture if they didn't get adequate calcium and vitamin D than were their peers who took supplements containing the vital nutrients, according to a study presented at a meeting of the Orthopaedic Research Society.

"Before you embark on any sort of exercise regimen, take calcium and vitamin D supplements to reduce your chances of a stress fracture," Dr. Sabrina Strickland, an orthopedic surgeon who specializes in sports medicine at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City, told HealthDay.

"The most common time for a stress fracture is when you're increasing your exercise levels -- when you're going from doing nothing to doing a whole lot," she explained. "It's too much too fast, and the bone can't handle it."

Stress fractures are overuse injuries, according the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. When you increase your activity level quickly or start exercising on a new surface, the muscles can't properly absorb the shock and transfer it to the bone, causing a tiny crack. The feet and lower legs are most susceptible to these injuries. And, once a stress fracture occurs, rest is the most important treatment. It's not uncommon for someone with a stress fracture to have to rest for up to eight weeks, according to the academy.

"Stress fractures are seen in people who do the same activity over and over again," Dr. Elton Strauss, an associate professor of orthopedic surgery at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City, told HealthDay.

The study involving Navy recruits was conducted as 5,200 women, aged 17 to 35, were undergoing basic training. They were randomly split into two groups, with one taking a placebo pill daily and the other taking 2,000 milligrams of calcium and 800 international units of vitamin D each day.

During basic training, 300 women developed a stress fracture. Of those women, 170 were taking the placebo and 130 were taking supplements -- which translates to a 25 percent decreased risk for women taking the supplements.

The study confirmed what Strickland said was her usual advice. "I recommend that all of my female patients take 1,200 to 1,500 milligrams of calcium citrate and 800 international units of vitamin D3 daily," she said.

Strauss said that cross-training is crucial for strengthening muscles and ligaments, which helps prevent stress fractures. "You shouldn't do the same sport seven days a week," he cautioned.

And, when you first start a new sport or activity, "don't do too much too fast," Strickland said. "The typical rule for runners, and one almost nobody follows, is to increase the amount of running by 10 percent each week."

On the Web

To learn more about stress fractures, visit the American Academy of Podiatric Sports Medicine.

SOURCES: HealthDay News ; Sabrina Strickland, M.D., orthopedic surgeon, Hospital for Special Surgery, assistant professor, orthopedic surgery, Weill Cornell Medical College, and chief, orthopedics, James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center, New York City; Elton Strauss, M.D., associate professor, orthopedic surgery, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York City; American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (www.aaos.org)
Author: Serena Gordon
Publication Date: Nov. 30, 2009
Copyright © 2009 ScoutNews, LLC. All rights reserved.