Why Bone Care From The Beginning Is So Important

The human body is a wonderful piece of engineering. It moves, bends, flexes, and permits us to do amazing acrobatics. Of course, then we grow up, and while the mind is willing, the body is less happy to move as it once did. There are several reasons for this.

As babies, the bones are still small and at different proportions of adult bones. And some of the bones are years away from becoming solid, strong, and reliable. As we mature, the muscles strengthen, the limbs lengthen, and the body tends to be used for fewer actions than through childhood.

Hormones will play a part in flexibility over the years, but the bones will remain relatively unchanged for decades. It is only when those hormones drop for women later in life, that we tend to become more concerned about bone health. Osteoporosis is more common than it needs to be for this age group. Have we left it too late?

Milk’s just for kids, right?

It’s true that a calcium enriched diet is essential for growing and developing bones in childhood. In fact, particularly in young men, calcium should be added to the diet until the mid-twenties. Bones can break quite easily should a diet be deficient in this essential mineral.

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Picture Credit: From tiny bones, to senior bones – take care of them for life.

It’s not just calcium that can help to ensure our bones are healthy and strong. An all-round healthy diet makes sure there are strong muscles, tendons and fat stores to protect the bones from impact or excessive movement. Joints also need to be cared for. Without regular movement and good circulation, joints can become immobile.

It seems sensible to include exercise in the mix when it comes to developing healthy and strong bones. Over time, the muscles also develop to support good posture and the bone structure. Is a healthy lifestyle from day one really all you need to make sure your bones are healthy for life?

Unfortunately, no. Genetics will always play a part. Other factors such as the environment can also affect your general health. There are many diseases that can affect the bones, like osteoporosis. Rarely, cancer can also form in the skeleton. This requires specialist treatment from an orthopedic oncologist. This is because primary bone tumors are rare so experienced professionals can be tricky to find.

If you are diagnosed with soft tissue, primary bone, or other musculoskeletal sarcomas, you might contact drallison.org to find out what options are available. Reconstruction of the bone and restoration of mobility might be your priority to get your life back on track following treatment. Diet and exercise will again play a major part in supporting this process.

So what are the secrets to taking care of your skeleton, no matter your age?

You might start with diet. Most of us are fed up with hearing that we should be ditching the sugar and only eating fresh produce. Your bone health might rely on this mantra. Sugar is thought to increase the secretion of calcium from your bones. If you have osteoporosis you might inadvertently be worsening your condition each time you eat a candy bar. Some experts think caffeine might have a similar effect.

Give up the extreme or fad diets though. Starving your bones of key nutrients by cutting certain foods from your meals is asking for trouble. You might not like dairy, but it’s a valuable source of calcium. Even after the age of twenty-five, it’s worth eating low-fat yogurts and drinking milk. If you’re lactose intolerant, look for other foods rich in calcium or choose fortified options. Supplements might be a good idea.

Magnesium is another mineral that is really important for maintaining strong bones. If you don’t take a daily multivitamin, then you can still find magnesium in your diet. Whole grain bread and pasta are great. If you have a wheat intolerance, you might need to search for a suitable supplement.

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Picture Credit: Many, but not all, of your bone health requirements can be found in vegetables.

The building blocks of strong bones are quite simple, really. Vegetables can provide much of what you need. Natural sources are usually best. One naturally sourced vitamin that good bones need isn’t so safe, though. The Government and health advisors recommend getting your daily vitamin D from a supplement, and not from sunbathing! Vitamin D helps calcium to be absorbed in the bones. Just as vitamin C support iron absorption, these two pals go together as well.

Protein is also needed because bones are made up of collagen. Vegetarians can look to beans and pulses. Fish and chicken can be good sources for others. ‘Proper’ stock can also take advantage of the calcium from bones, while the meat provides the protein needed. Varied diets are ideal, but perhaps many could still benefit from supplements to support bone health.

Last, but not least, your bones need potassium (found in bananas), and vitamin K. K is for Kale, and spinach can provide a healthy dose of this vitamin too. If you bleed or bruise easily, this could be a warning sign that you lack sufficient vitamin K in your diet. This doesn’t just lead to weakened bones, but can also cause tooth decay, heart disease and cancer.

What about the exercise?

Any exercise is obviously better than none. If you want to exercise specifically to strengthen and protect bones, then look to weight-bearing exercise. Lifting, pushing, pulling and swinging can all offer great activities for this purpose. Best of all, many of these exercise choices can use your own body weight to be effective. No extra equipment is required.

Experts state that cardiovascular exercises like brisk walking, dance aerobics, and jogging are still important for overall health. Conveniently, all of these upright activities can also strengthen the bones due to using your body weight and impact on your legs and feet. It’s important to find exercises that you can enjoy daily.

It’s true that HRT can sometimes help reduce the risk of weaker bones and osteoporosis. But it’s important to remember that 1 in 4 men can also suffer this problem. Look at bone health as a lifelong commitment to good diet and exercise.

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Good Investments for Timeless Interior Design

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When you move into your first home, it’s likely that you will have a mishmash of previously owned items that family members have handed down to you in your moment of need. You might also have been scavenging around flea markets and discount stores to get things that will last just a few years until you can ‘do it all properly’.

Unless you are truly dedicated, this time will never come.

What you may not realise is that even though your home is not yet particularly yours, you can definitely start investing in pieces now that will last you for a long time. These pieces are unlikely to go out of fashion and will be easily manipulated to fit with seasonal trends as they come and go.

Though it is hard to make investments when you are young, holding off on buying lots of cheaper furniture and choosing more carefully will pay off later on. Buying sensible, hardwearing household items will make sure that they last and will make redecorating a simple case of a splash of paint and some new accessories. Plus, it means that you won’t have to suddenly spend a lot to do the house, just split the cost over the years.

Here are a few things worth saving for.

Well Made Furniture

If you want to incorporate real lasting style into your interior design, there is no better place to invest your money than in high end furniture. When furniture is built to a high standard you can be sure that it will last for much longer than its cheaper counterparts. Solid wood is always worth investing in as it will certainly last much longer than a ‘wood effect’ which will probably peel off after a few years.

However, price is not everything. You can certainly find good bargains on high end furniture and design. Have a look around for vintage pieces as well, especially if they are a beautiful shape. Shape is the most important part of any piece as it is usually the only thing that can’t reasonably be changed. You can reupholster or paint dark wood, but the shape is here to stay.

The most important pieces to choose are your sofa, dining table and bed. These will be the most used pieces of furniture in your whole house and will likely determine the style of the rest of the room. Get these right and you will be able to keep them going for many years to come, simply changing accessories and paint colors when you want to revamp the room.

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Wooden Floors

A wooden floor is a really good way to spend your money. It will be easier to clean than carpet and less prone to holding allergens too. There are all sorts of different wooden floors available but if you pick one that is hard wearing, it should last you for many years to come.

Wooden floors have remained fashionable for a very long time for one simple reason: you can always update your look by adding in a new rug as styles change. For modern open plan living, a continuous wooden floor provides a natural flow between spaces that can be defined using layered rugs.

The Perfect Mattress

Sleep is incredibly important and it is shocking how many people make do with a mattress that isn’t suited to them at all. A bad mattress won’t just interrupt your sleep, it will cause you back problems in the future if your spine is not properly aligned over night.

There really is no excuse for not visiting a mattress showroom before you purchase and while you are there make the most of your time. You should lie on each mattress for at least 15 minutes before you decide whether it’s for you or not. Don’t let yourself be hurried along, and don’t feel self conscious either. Settle down as if you were to go to sleep and try at least 3 different mattresses. Obviously, if you are buying as a couple, you both need to be there!

LED Lights

They may be more expensive, but LED lights are perfect for lowering your energy bills and providing you with much brighter light. How you choose to light each room is really down to your own preference but you can add fantastic drama with your lights if you know what you’re doing.

Current trends for low hanging lights over the dining table or in the bedroom are really beautiful but make sure that you install basic spotlights as well. You might not use them all the time, but when you need a bright light that is otherwise unobtrusive, a spotlight is definitely the way to go.

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Image Credit: Wikimedia

A Big Mirror

Once your lighting has been sorted, the next best thing you can do is introduce large mirrors around the house. They will reflect natural light giving these sensation that your rooms are much bigger than they really are. A cluster of smaller mirrors will also work well to make a feature of an otherwise empty wall.

While you can get cheaper mirrors, the best are glass and will give you the clearest reflection. You might get away with a cheaper mirror but once you have a glass mirror, there really is no comparison and you will see the difference. This is what makes it worth the investment as a good mirror will never let you down.

As fashions and interior decorating styles go in and out, these are the few things that you can be sure are a wise investment to make. Any house is not turned into a home over night and you can be sure that as the years go by your space will reflect the times and the changes too.

There’s no rush to make your home perfect. In fact, perfection is not really what you should be striving for. Instead try to make your home feel comfortable, safe and reflect a little bit of your personality too. Good interior design is a journey, not a destination.

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Osteoporosis: The Hidden Health Problem That Could Be Causing Your Pain

Today, I want to talk about a health problem that affects millions of people without them even knowing it. As the title suggests, I’m talking about osteoporosis. Below, you’ll find some information on what this condition is, how to treat it, and how you can also prevent yourself from having it. Read on to indulge in all this great info.

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What Is Osteoporosis?

Osteoporosis is a condition that affects most people at some point in their life. It’s mainly an issue for elderly people, but this is often because it’s only diagnosed later in life. The problem itself revolves around your bones. People with osteoporosis are found to have much weaker bones than normal. As a result, they’re likely to be at risk of regular fractures, causing them a lot of pain.

Most people don’t realise they have this problem until they’ve actually fractured a bone and are in pain. You might slip and fall, or get hit with something, causing lots of pain in a part of your body. You go to a doctor, and they say you’ve fractured a bone, then run tests and tell you that you actually have osteoporosis.

It’s common for people to have minor fractures in bones such as their ribs or spine, which cause persistent pain. But, because they’re small fractures, you don’t realise you actually have a broken bone. So, you go about your daily life experiencing on and off pain, not knowing you actually have a fracture caused by weak bones.

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Treating The Problem

You’ll be pleased to know there is a range of treatment problems available to anyone that might suffer from this problem. Primarily, the treatments aim to improve the strength and density of your bones, leaving them less prone to breaks or fractures.

What can you take for osteoporosis? A mixture of supplements and actual medication is the best way forward. On the supplement side of things, you should take a good quality calcium supplement. As these AlgaeCal reviews and testimonials show, many people enjoy improved bone density when supplementing calcium. But, this alone won’t help combat osteoporosis, and there are plenty of over the counter medicines you can be prescribed. It’s well worth seeing a doctor to learn more about this.

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Preventing The Problem

Along with treating osteoporosis, it’s crucial you try and prevent this problem from harming you. People with this condition can prevent fractures by being more careful around the house and taking as much care as possible to avoid falling.

Again, you could turn to supplements if you don’t have this condition but are worried about getting it when you’re older. Calcium should be a big priority, as should the likes of vitamin D. Being active and exercising can also help, as living a sedentary lifestyle can cause your bones to almost waste away as you’re not doing anything.

You don’t have to be old to worry about osteoporosis. I suggest we all make an active effort to prevent this problem from occurring later in life. Otherwise, the slightest knock could result in broken bones, and we’ll spend our retirement years in and out of the hospital.

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Elf-Employed? The Freelancer Struggle During The Holiday Season

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One thing that self-employed people struggle with at the best of times is the holiday season, regardless of whether it is Christmas time, Easter, or you just need a break, the difficulty in taking time off, whether self-imposed or not, is that you don’t get paid for it. So, the self-employed group of workers needs the same amount of time off like everybody else, but because of the nature of the work, this is seldom the case. And as nice as it would be to give yourself those four weeks off, you know deep down that it’s not plausible. So, what can you do to lessen the burden of not being paid, but while also having a good time yourself?

Plan Ahead

Yes, this is, unfortunately, the most sensible solution. You know your working patterns, and you know when you are liable to burn out, so you should structure your finances accordingly. Lots of people make the mistake of taking one job after another, and before they know it, they have worked 6 months straight without a break. While you may be rolling in the monies, your health reserves are very likely at an all-time low. You may have thought instead it’s worth taking a loan out to help cover those free dates in the calendar that you have set aside, but if you get into the habit of taking a loan out so you can enjoy yourself, the burden of debt will very likely rear its ugly head. But while there are resources online on how to deal with debt, the best approach is to plan your finances accordingly. If you’ve been self-employed for some time, you know the peak and off-peak seasons so you can plan your breaks around those.

Holiday With The Family

This may not sound like a great sounding option, but the one thing about taking a vacation back at your parents’ house, or in your hometown, is that it will be a lot cheaper than going to the Algarve for two weeks. And besides, your parents would be happy to see you, even if they didn’t show it! And, time it around peak holiday seasons, like Christmas, and you will get fed! This means that minimal money will be spent on your part and you get a decent break. If this doesn’t appeal, then it’s a Netflix box set, your pajamas, and some chocolates for a week. Again, cheap and cheerful, and it achieves the desired effect!

Being A Social Butterfly

Wild nights out are incredibly expensive, instead, why don’t you propose to have a gathering at your home, or someone else’s? Dinner parties, parties, or any type of social gathering which doesn’t require you to go anywhere, is very cheap, and you will be grateful for the break away from your self-employed life. No doubt, you have been slaving away, day in and day out, for months on end. So, make the most of your time off, and socialize!

Being self-employed doesn’t mean constant vacations where you have no money, but if you find yourself in these trappings consistently, not only should you have a reassessment of how you tackle self-employment during the holiday season, but also how you tackle your finances.

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How to take care of your designer jeans

Research showed that on average, a woman owns seven pairs of denim jeans! When asked for reasons why they purchased this type of pant, 56% said it was for their durability and 71% said it was for their flattering look. So, understandably, we want these qualities to last. Wear and tear is often inevitable but there are ways to maintain the colour and care for your designer denim. Trilogy Stores, stockists of designer skinny jeans, have provided us with some handy tips.

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When wearing and storing

Denim jeans are a go-to option for completing any outfit at any time of the year! We definitely get our wear out of them and want them to last as long as possible. There are some things that you can do to help maintain their flattering shape and fit.

First of all, wear them as much as possible before the first wash. This will help the denim conform to your body and help preserve them in the shape that you need them. Instead of washing after every time you wear them as you might with other clothing, denim experts recommend that you wash your jeans as seldom as possible. Washing too frequently has been known to fade the colour and damage the denim material. Instead, spot clean with a damp sponge or soft toothbrush to remove smaller stains. Or, if you feel as though your jeans need a freshen up, hang them outside to air or spray them with a fabric freshener.

When storing them in your wardrobe, try to avoid hanging them up with clipped hangers. These can dig into your denim and create impressions in the waistband or in the knees that can be hard to get rid of. Instead, fold jeans and place on shelves, or buy S hooks which you can attach to the belt loops and hang on a regular coat hanger.

When washing

The washing technique that you choose can be what causes your jeans to fade and not last as long as they should.

Turning your jeans inside out is a key tip. It reduces fading and prevents as much colour from running onto other garments. This method also stops buttons hitting against the drum in the washing machine and avoids damage to zips or press studs.

Wash on a cool, gentle cycle that is no hotter than 30 degrees. The heat can destroy the elastane and ruin the fitting shape of your jeans. You can buy a denim wash that has been designed to care for the colour and fibres in denim, it is non-biological and suitable for washing your favourite pair of jeans.

Putting too many pairs of jeans in the washing machine at one time can cause damage to the materials and the machine due to their weight. It is recommended that you wash a maximum of 4 jeans at once. You could also try hand-washing. Although it can be time-consuming, it’s a good way to avoid damage that could occur in the washer. Simply soak for 20 minutes in detergent and then air dry.

Make sure that you keep your colours separate too. Don’t put an indigo pair of denim jeans in with a pastel pair as the colour may run onto the lighter jean. When it comes to coated denim, these jeans should avoid the washing machine completely — opt for a dry clean instead.

There are some other tips out there, that are a bit out of the ordinary but might be worth a try… Some suggest freezing the jean when they need freshening up. Simply make sure that pockets are empty, fold up and place in a plastic bag. Keep them in the freezer until you’re ready to wear them next. Another recommendation is adding salt and vinegar to a hand wash. This is meant to prevent colour bleeding and keep the fabric colour set for longer.

When drying

When it comes to drying your designer jeans, you must be careful to not distort the shape of them or encourage fading.

Definitely do not wring dry. This can cause the shape of the jeans to change and cause wrinkles and creases that you’ll soon want to get rid of. Instead, roll up the jean and press firmly to release and excess water. You could hang the jeans up outside and allow to air dry, however some people are against this as the sunlight can cause fading. Alternatively, you could dry on a flat surface indoors or use a clothes rack.

Avoid drying on a radiator or in a tumble dryer — the heat from these can do damage to the denim. For the same reason, avoid ironing your jeans — simply put them on and the creases will fall out on their own.

A final tip is to read the manufacturer recommendations on the tag. The manufacturer knows the material the best and how to care for it without causing damage. Follow this advice for long-lasting jeans that will continue to flatter you.

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Learning to be Selfless in a Selfish World

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If you struggle with selfishness, you will be glad to hear you are not alone! It can be really hard to put others first and yourself second and as lessons go, this is a long one. In fact, you may spend your whole life striving to do better and become a more selfless person.

Prayer alone won’t do it, though. You need to got out into the world and discover God’s purpose for you.

Mission Trips and Camp

Christian camps are perfect for bringing youths into contact with God and his teachings. They are also ideal places to really get in touch with yourself and figure out what your purpose is. Even one summer as a counselor at a Christian Camp one summer at college can change your life forever and open your eyes to what is meant to be.

Mission trips for teenagers are a great opportunity too. They teach lifelong lessons to help kids set aside their selfishness and care for a community or restore an environment.

Tapping your deep pockets thru a GoFundMe is one way to help those who are interested in going to these mission trips and camps. You may be an instrument in teaching that it doesn’t hurt to be selfless especially in helping others.

The trip might only last a few days, but the experience, like a Christian Camp will last forever and lay a deep foundation for their faith.

Volunteer

The best way to tackle your selfishness head on is to volunteer your time for someone needy. This might be helping out someone who is elderly or sick or it could be a regular activity you do with your church. Giving your time is so beneficial for these people because it shows that you care for them and are willing to put them first. Embody the spirit of Christ and find joy in your selflessness.

Setting time aside for other people will also help you to place your own needs behind those of others. Take a moment to reflect on how you can help and the good you can spread. Let these thoughts influence your prayer to and pray for others as well as guidance for yourself. As time goes on, you will feel the change in yourself – your personal, spiritual and social growth. This can only be a good thing.

Love Thy Neighbor

Finding the ability to love everyone in your heart is a ability that takes more than selflessness, it takes empathy and and strength. Above all else, being able to feel love, even for those who would wish you harm, is a true test of faith and your own determination to be guided by God. Everyone deserves salvation and that is what loving and praying for your neighbors is about: giving them the chance to find God as you have and share in the joy he brings.

When so many others are selfish – and our world has never been so selfish, it seems – it is hard not to look inwardly and become selfish too. It takes time and effort to become selfless, it will be a work in progress over your whole life. But with some guidance from God, you will find yourself in positions where you can make a difference and become truly selfless, even for a moment.

Trust, and He will provide.

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Are Your Debts Your Age?

Debt has become the cross to bear almost all adults have to live with these days. Answering why would be like trying to make sense of anything Jaqen H’ghar has ever said (a little Game of Thrones reference for you there), which is nigh on impossible. At the more innocent end of the scale it has a lot to do with unexpected circumstances popping up in your life, at the more sinister end of proceedings it is to do with the lack of any formal education on money matters, and somewhere in the middle, it is to do with the cost of living.

Whatever the case, debt is something most adolescents don’t think about, getting help with paying debt down is something all middle-aged Americans have to focus on and enjoying a debt-free retirement is something more and more retirees are seeing as a pipedream.

To break this epidemic down a little more, we’re going to delve into the circumstance of each age group, something that will help you know you’re not alone and hopefully motivate you to change your fortunes, literally.

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Under The Age Of 35

The average debt for a household whereby the main breadwinner is under the age of 35 is a staggering $82,764. That is quite terrifying because most people won’t have started accumulating debt until they were eighteen, which makes that a dozen years of heavy spending. Of course, not all households that fall within this age bracket have debt, which is why this is simply an average based on those that do. It also worth pointing out that a mortgage is a big chunk of this – the average mortgage debt at this age is $143,890.

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Between 35 And 44

No surprises for guessing what happens here because, with more years to accumulate date and upsize a home, the debt increases with those that fall within this age group. In fact, the people residing in this bracket have the highest average debt of all at $153,239, with the average mortgage debt being closer to $190,000. This is a terrifying number if your debt is made up of personal loans and credit cards and not a mortgage and just one of the reasons why staying out of debt needs to be of the utmost importance to people growing up.

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Between 45 And 64

This is where the debts a household has accumulated starts to decline, which will have a lot to do with the sudden rise in average salaries at the age too. More money means less financial burden when paying off debts. For those closer to the 44 -ear marker, debts will stand at around $150,000, with this figure slipping away to $131,000 in that twenty year period as they start to focus on the kind of retirement they want to enjoy. They may well have assets that are worth a lot more than this figure or they may have a negative net worth. It i a flip of a coin at this age.

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Between 65 And 74

Most people hold the same dream: to be debt free by the time they retire. Unfortunately, though, this is becoming less and less realistic, especially for us Americans, and by unrealistic we mean carrying the burden of $108,765 with us. That is quite substantial. It is also worth pointing out that many of these secured debts are held against an average mortgage of $130,400.

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