Page B12 - The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, September 29, 1993

Active lifestyle can help

Row, row, row your boat...
Not too merrily.

Drinking and boating caries rare same stiff panalties as drinking and driving.

: Watch out. Police on the water now carry ;
| to ward off bone disease ces :
Drinking &

BY DONALEEN SAUL as running or jogging, which Boating sre Canadien Fed Gross Socety

For both preventing and Why else would osteoporosis be an occupational M™* not be possible for older Think it over. Keeping Canedians WaterSate since 1946, ;

individuals.
Depending on your age
group, other recommended ac-

treating osteoporosis, exercise
is a definite must,
Although heredity plays its

hazard for astronauts, who lose as much as two per-
cent of bone mass for every month in flight because
they lack the benefit of gravity and physical activity

part in influencing: a person’s

propensity ‘toward

osteoporosis, OF porosity of the
bone, a condition caused by a
loss of bone mass and resullt-
ing in increased susceptibility
to fractures, there is no ques-
tion that a sedentary lifestyle
contributes to it-in a big way.

Why else would osteoporosis
be an occupational hazard for
astronauts, who lose as much
as two percent of bone mass
for every month. in flight be-
cause they lack the benefit of
gravity and physical activity
while in space?

Exercise pays off greatly
during the bone’s . prime

growth years. Movement ¢x-.

erts mechanical. pressure on
the skeleton, and that pressure
initiates the bone remodeling
process. In this process,
osteoclasts, or bone-cating
cells, are continually hollow-
ing out tunnels and cavities,
which are continually being
refilled by osteoblasts or bone-
building cells.

It is important to remember
that weight-bearing exercise,
or activities in which you can.

while in space?

lift and lower your feel is very
beneficial to bone. Also,
stretching or pulling muscle
tendons over bone stimulates
bone-making cells underneath
to. move around and produce
bone faster than other cells can
destroy it,

Muscle mass and bone mass
are directly related. In a study
of. amenorrheic anorexic
women (women with an ap-
petite disorder whose periods
have stopped) published in the
New England Journal of medi-
cine, those women who were
more physically active had
denser bones than those who
were sedentary.

To get adequate exercise to
build bone, you don’t have to
be an olympic. athlete or a
marathon runner, According to

Dr. Robert Becker, a leading.

osteoporosis researcher at
Creighton University, recrea-
tional sports, two to four items
a week - tennis, jogging, ‘bad-
minton, volleyball:- is enough

to give you a substantial ef-
fect,

In fact, steady moderate ex-
ercise is easier to maintain and
better in the long run than at-
tempting to keep up the ex-
ercise regimen of a competi-
tive athlete, because bone
“de-trains’’ in the same way

as the muscles and the heart.

do. If you stop doing an in-
tense level of exercise, you'll
lose what you gained by doing
it, and alli of that intense effort
will be for nothing.

If you already have
osteoporosis, or if a bone
density test reveals that you
are osteopenic, which means
your bones are weakening but
not to the point of having frac-
tures, Dr. Charles H. Chestnut
of the University of Washing-

ton Medical Centre endorses

moderate exercise as one com-

ponent of your treatment pro-
‘gram,

In such a program, walking

is universally recommended, It

is considered to be as effective

ow Directions in Health. Care

RRACE COMMUNITY HEALTH COUNCIL Lb

eUPDATE®e

ay. 29, 1993, a Community Health Forum ¢ came up
vith “suggestions on the purpose, memberships” and.
sibilities of the Terrace Community Health Planning
. yolinteer Task: Force was mandated: t0..g0..
f information gathered and present it coherently :
= nd Community | Health Forum. © Mes

Task Force has completed its duties and’ is presently.
planning: to hold another Community Health Forum on-the
g of ‘Wednesday, October 6,:1993, from 7: pm. - 10
fat the Skeena Health Unit. ; Registration begins a at 6; 30

‘members of the: public are welcome to ‘peruée .
formation, make comments. and come to. the ext.
community Health Forum. An: ‘information ‘package “is
Nailable. by contacting Dave Dennis at 632 3467,

tivities include jumping rope,
light aerobics, and social danc-
ing, Ballroom dancing, square
dancing, or country dancing
can be very beneficial because
they provide weight bearing
exercise as well as smooth,
coordinated movement of
muscles,

Yoga and Tai Chi can also
be very welcome additions to
your exercise program. The
combination of gentle stretch-
ing and movement, as well as
the benefits with respect to
emotional and spiritual well-
being that both of these ac-
tivities provide, are not to be
underestimated.

- Swimming is less useful for
building bone in your younger
years, but if you are suffering
from osteoporosis and it isn’t
too far advanced, it can be
ideal. Golf and bicycling are
other possibilities, | and
homemaking and gardening
can provide additional . ex-
ercise provided you are careful
to avoid back strain, For ex-
ample it is recommended that
you stand to paint at a easel,
sit in straight-backed chairs
with sewing =‘ materials
mounted on a pillow on your
lap, and use a lectern for read-
ing,

‘TE you are not interested in
athletics or attending classes,
here afe some other pos-
sibilities - walking at least 20
minutes daily, standing or
pacing during homemaking
activities (eg, meal _prepara-

“tion, talking on the phone);

parking further from the store
or work, taking children or.

_pets for a walk; using stairs

Tather than- escalators; .and-

— at home.

(Boxed)

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EARLY DEADLINE |
_ NEXT WEEK

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_ (ply and classifieds) in the October 13th Terrace Standard and the
- October 17th Skeena Marketplace will be one day early

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