Don't go breaking your bones

If you care to listen, I have a confession to make: Decades ago, many moons and monsoons ago, my gal friends and I were singing

Don’t Go Breaking My Heart

by Elton John. We were young and in love, and in the pink of health. Now, we’re singing a different tune and it goes, “Don’t go breaking my bones.” And while my gorgeous gal friends used to see an architect, a lawyer, a banker, an accountant or a doctor, now they only see a doctor and not for any amorous reason.

In my irreverent circle of journalist friends, we don’t like to talk about menopause, aging, and some such dreadful topics. Are we in denial? Maybe. But life is too short to spend too much time talking about how little our time on earth is.

But now, it’s about time I faced the music: Did you know that osteoporosis is among the world’s debilitating diseases, affecting mostly women in their 50s and up, and its prevalence rises exponentially among elders? That a single snap of a bone can change one’s life dramatically?

I didn’t really know those things until I attended a round-table (not literally speaking) press conference conducted by Anlene.

“Osteoporosis has grown to become a global health concern,” speaks Annie Robinson, Fonterra senior nutritionist who flew in from New Zealand for this all-important discussion. “With the ever increasing rate of osteoporotic fracture, there is a need to raise awareness on how the number of fatalities that go along with this disease can be curbed.”

Angela Pablo, senior nutritionist of Fonterra Philippines

Let’s deal with the painful facts: There’s one osteoporotic fracture case that happens every three seconds worldwide, 20 percent of which leads to death.

As you probably already know, osteoporosis occurs when the bone mass decreases faster than the body can replace it, resulting in a net loss of bone mass. Which is why a slight bump or fall can lead to fracture. But as osteoporosis manifests no signs or symptoms, it is referred to as a silent disease.

But not for long though. Giving this silent disease a voice — and a face — is Anlene, the high-calcium milk specially formulated to promote strong bones. Anlene supplies 70 percent of the world’s milk requirements. It is the first milk clinically proven to reduce the rate of bone loss among Asian women. It is the only milk proven to reduce bone breakdown in as little as four weeks. It is the only milk product that answers the calcium requirements of each age range.

Make no bones about it: One out of two Filipino is at risk of osteoporosis. Thus, Anlene has been traveling the length and breadth of the country to conduct a bone health check, the world’s largest bone health-related activation.

The Anlene Bone Health Check is like a traveling caravan that goes to different places in the Philippines to make people aware of this real and present danger called osteoporosis. The caravan offers bone health scanning and assessment, and osteoporosis risk analysis. From June 2005 to July 2011, Anlene has scanned one million people, half of whom have moderate to high-risk osteoporosis.

Boning up: Annie Robinson, nutritionist of Fonterra New Zealand undergoes her bone health check.

“The alarming revelation indicates that there’s a need for massive awareness on how Filipinos can properly take care of themselves so they will not succumb to osteoporosis,” notes Louise Yu, senior brand manager of Anlene.

A bone health check was also made available at the Anlene round-table talk with the print media. Some had it before gorging on the sumptuous buffet lunch at Makati Shangri-La while the others (like me) had it after a guilt-free dessert indulgence that had the yummiest desserts made with Anlene milk like caramel custard, Black Forest Cake, tiramisu, pudding, etc. I bravely submitted myself to the bone health check. The verdict? Low risk. Healthy bones.

Yehey! For me, it was like passing an exam in school with flying colors. Or winning the lotto!

There’s no stopping this all-out Anlene campaign. This year, it hopes to allot P50 million to send 26 teams consisting of 150 people and 36 bone scanning machines all over the country.

After dessert, while some were enjoying their coffee, this question was raised: Is coffee bad for the bones?

“Yes,” comes the instant reply of Angela Parblo, Fonterra nutritionist. “The tannin in coffee, which is also found in tea, excretes the calcium from the body. So you’re only allowed to take one to two cups of coffee daily. Or if you’re drinking coffee, add more milk to it.”

And now, as Anlene partners with the International Osteoporosis Foundation and the Osteoporosis Society of the Philippines, Anlene prescribes three effective ways to keep our bones strong and healthy:

Anlene is the only milk product proven to reduce bone breakdown in as little as four weeks.

• Eat a balanced diet rich in calcium, protein, and vitamin D. Calcium and protein are the building blocks of strong bones — a diet rich in protein and calcium improves bone and muscle health at all ages. And what are the excellent sources of calcium and protein? Answer: Dairy products like milk, yoghurt, cheese, fish, and nuts. As for vitamin D, which is essential in calcium absorption, sunlight is your best bet but you can also get it from fatty fish and eggs.

• Exercise regularly. Daily exercise helps build and maintain strong bones, and prevents muscles from wasting away. Among the exercises that increase bone density are multiple weight-lifting exercises and weight-bearing aerobic exercise. Of course, consult an orthopedist on this.

• Keep a healthy lifestyle. Make a lifestyle check. Take note that smoking, excessive alcohol, and a sedentary lifestyle all contribute to making oneself susceptible to osteoporosis.

So, ladies — and gents, too — shall we all bone up on bone health?

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