Healthy Bones Action Week (12-18 August) may have been and gone, but Dairy Australia and Life Education want young Aussies to stay inspired about ways to grow healthy, strong bones for life.
ABS data reveals 80 per cent of Aussie kids are not meeting their recommended serves of dairy – and bone expert and senior researcher Dr Sandra Iuliano from University of Melbourne’s Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry, and Health Sciences told EducationDaily that this means the next generation are missing out on bone-building nutrition.
She says childhood and adolescence are critical periods for kids and teens to grow healthy, strong bodies, with the window of opportunity for building bone mass at its peak in adolescence and continuing into early adulthood, before closing at 30 years of age.
Teaching children that nutritional needs evolve
Depending on age and sex, kids need between 1.5 and three serves of dairy every day to ensure they are providing their body with essential nutrients like calcium and protein to promote growth, development and brain function.
By educating young Australians about three simple actions that can be taken to support bone health, including consuming dairy, safe sun exposure for Vitamin D, and undertaking regular weight-bearing exercise, Iuliano wants to remind parents that children and teens are in their prime time to build bone.
“The greater bone mass we build, the stronger our bones are, and the lower the risk of osteoporosis and fractures later in life,” she says.
“Encouraging kids to enjoy dairy foods daily is a simple yet effective way to support their bone growth, whether it’s a glass of milk in the morning, a serving of yoghurt as a snack, or a slice of cheese in their lunchtime sandwich. These foods provide the nutrients to build strong bones and support overall health, making dairy an important part of a child’s daily diet.”
Iuliano says a number of factors contribute to bone health.
“The main ones would be that children are spending less time outdoors (playing) and more time indoors (screen time). Running around, jumping, skipping, hopping normal play activities are good for bone as they are weight bearing so stimulate the bone to be stronger,” she told EducationDaily.
“From research, we know that children who avoid drinking milk for whatever reason have higher fracture rates compared to children who drink milk. Getting enough calcium is important.”
She says it’s important for families to realise that the dietary guidelines are designed to ensure we get enough of the nutrients we need for good health – and that individual needs evolve as we age.
“For example, the number of servings of milk, yoghurt or cheese goes up from 2.5 – three for children to 3.5 for teenagers. That is because teenagers are growing their skeleton more rapidly (puberty!), so need more calcium to help build the bone.
“The ideal is to lay down as much bone as genetically possible while we have the chance, during growth.”
Educators and carers deliver health education for life
Positive life changes can make a difference, says Iuliano, who says weight-bearing exercise is helpful.
“With exercise for bone, it is the magnitude of the impact more than the number of impacts, so sprinting for 100 metres would be better for your bone than jogging for kilometres,” she says.
“Vitamin D is important. In Australia we can produce vitamin D all year round but it is a careful balance between being SunSmart and safe sun exposure.”
LifeED plays an important part in spreading awareness in Australian schools, says Iuliano, because it’s “about teaching children the skill and knowledge they need to lead a healthy life”.
“It is during growth that positive changes can be made to bone.”
For families and educators keen to lay solid foundation for good bone health education, Iuliano recommends simply leading by example can be a powerful educational approach – something she says adults can do “by being active, showing your children that being active has an important part to play in all our lives”.
Empowering children to protect their own health
Karen Robertson is Head of Education and Impact at Life Ed Australia – the largest provider in preventative health education in schools – and says it’s important to empower children to take charge of their health, by giving them the tools to build life-long healthy habits.
Families can do this by talking with children about the importance of good nutrition and being active, while teachers can also incorporate conversations about elements of nutrition and exercise into a range of subjects in the classroom.
“Without our bones, we’d be like jellyfish! Having strong bones helps us to continue doing the things that we love and knowing the facts about bone development mean we can make informed decisions when it comes to fuelling our bodies,” Roberston says.
“That’s what we teach in our program. Life Ed educates children on the ways they can build strong, healthy bones.”
