As summer draws to a close, it’s a great time to engage in bone-healthy activities that fit the season such as taking walks to enjoy the colorful foliage.
But shorter days and less sunlight can sometimes make us feel sad and generally “down.” Thankfully, these feelings are transient and don’t typically progress into depression.
As new research sheds light on the brain-bone connection, if for whatever reason you’re feeling down, you could be unknowingly harming your bones.
You see, scientists have now discovered a brand new link between your nervous system and your bones.
And that’s today’s fascinating information I’m thrilled to share with you as well as easy ways to preventing the occasional “blues” from hurting your bones.
The Brain and Bone Connection
Researchers and doctors have noticed that depressed people tended to have low bone density, and they even traced this to a lack of a protein called interleukin 1. But no one knew how or even if depression and bone loss were actually related.
To unravel this mystery, scientists at Hebrew University induced a condition similar to depression in mice. (They did this by injecting a weakened rabies virus into the mice’s femurs, where the virus travels to the brain, causing symptoms of depression.)
When the mice had exhibited signs of depression for four weeks – particularly a lack of participation in pleasurable activities and decreased social interaction – the mice’s bone density was tested, revealing a dramatic loss of bone mass.1
What they found is that depression sets off the sympathetic nervous system that connects your brain and your skeleton. When this system is activated, a substance called noradrenaline is secreted.
Noradrenaline Has a Crippling Effect on Osteoblasts, the Bone-Building Cells
“‘The new findings, which we have discovered in the Hebrew University laboratories, point for the first time to depression as an important element in causing bone mass loss and osteoporosis,’”1 said one of the researchers, Professor Raz Yirmiya.
Feeling Depressed Can Accelerate Bone Loss
Since there is such a clear connection between your nervous system and your bones, it stands to reason that a healthful remedy would involve both systems. Fortunately, there is such a remedy…
Studies Show That Exercise Can Increase Production of New Brain Cells!
It’s well-established that exercise helps improve your mood; but scientists in California and Germany found some compelling insights into how this works.
When mice were separated into various groups and exposed to different types of exercise, the mice that used a treadmill actually increased the number of nerve cells in their bodies. “…voluntary exercise results in increased cell proliferation, survival and neuronal differentiation in the hippocampus of adult mice,”2 the study concludes.
Amazingly, the process of making new nerve cells, called neurogenesis, not only happens in children, as it was previously thought. In fact, according to another study, neurogenesis also occurs in the adult brain.3
Isn’t it amazing to know that adults can actually grow new nerve cells in their brains?
Regular Exercise Ties it All Together
Exercise is the element that unites your brain, mood, and bone density. You see, regular weight-bearing exercise, like the moves described in the Densercise eBook System, builds bone density and stimulates neurogenesis.
And the research is clear that such exercise also enhances your mood. The improved mood and stimulated brain then come back around to build your bones in another way, as you read earlier. No doubt, it’s a win-win-win!
If you really want to get your bones in tip-top shape and lift your spirits this season…
Densercise Has What You Need
Simple and easy to follow, Densercise is an incredibly effective exercise program that’s designed to increase bone density. It works best in conjunction with the natural diet and lifestyle described in the Osteoporosis Reversal Program, and takes just 15 minutes a day three times a week.
Please click here to learn more about Densercise.
Best wishes for a happy, healthy autumn!
References
1 Bajayo, Alon, et al. “Skeletal parasympathetic innervation communicates central IL-1 signals regulating bone mass accrual.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. USA. 2012 September 18; 109(38): 15455-15460. Web. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3458367/
2 Van Praag, Henriette, Kempermann, Gerd, and Gage, Fred H. “Running increases cell proliferation and neurogenesis in the adult mouse dentate gyrus.” Nature America Inc.1999. pdf.
3 Gerd, Kempermann. “Adult neurogenesis: stem cells and neuronal development in the adult brain.” Oxford University Press. 2006. Web. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/nlmcatalog/101264635?report=Full
Comments on this article are closed.
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Hi, VIvian u guys are doing excellent job!…I hv a query that my child is one and a half year now .. but I can’t see progress in his height from months… he is very particular in eating habits….he only likes to have cerelac a food supplement..ls could you guide me through this….its very concerning factor as bcoz of this stress I am already a thyroid patient and noe suffering frm bone dendity loss….
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This is important, helpful information,
Thanks – shula -
so very many thanks for the updates and the personal caring that accompanies each weekly correspondence
each week I eagerly look forward to your mail and I am so much better since I started your program ….early next year I shall do a density test
please tell where in the US I can purchase, True Osteo, I am on my last bottle.
God bless -
It is beginning to make sense. Thank you for explaining the connection. Sending Love to all at Save Our Bones and Members. REMEMBER: I CAN AND I WILL!
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Hi! Vivian,
I Taking Kava Cool Complex And 5HTP For Depression And Anxiety. And I’m Trying To Replace All My Other Prescriptions With An Herbal Equivalent.
Am I Doing The Right Thing So Far? Please Let Me Know. And I Thank You Very Much, In Advance, For All Your Wonderful Articles, And Advice.LOVE, LESLIE (MS. L. CARMEL)
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Dear Leslie,
Do you have a naturally-minded physician or qualified herbalist you can consult with? He or she can help you in your decision to move from medications to herbal remedies. 🙂
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A Parkinson’s group has found out that through exercise victims of this disease can lead almost normal lives. Their brains keep functioning, and they can keep out of wheelchairs. Exercise, to them, is vital. There is a direct correlation from movement to brain power and I’ve seen the results of this with my own eyes.
Thanks Vivian for highlighting this important message today.
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Dear Viv –
Thank you for this most recent insight.
You are just Marvelous!!! I just flat-out Love You for all that you do!
Blessings to You!!
Lezlie -
It’s interesting that anti-depressants make bone density worse, even though they are meant to deal with depression!!
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I enjoy the articles U have been printing, but am extremely disappointed in the fact that we can not get the bone supplements any longer from the States. They will not ship to us in Canada any longer, something about the shipping etc. We get other bone supplements shipped from the States, no problem. Is there anything U can do about this?? the name of the supplement is TrueOsteo. Thank you
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This is an interesting piece of research, although the skeptical scientist in me notes correlations that bear further investigation and experimentation – it’s the way scientific understanding progresses after all. It IS very tempting to jump to what seem-to-be such obvious conclusions, and sure, it seems clear that exercise and mood are linked, and therefore bone health – and, by extension, what ‘runs’ the body and also benefits from extra stimulation, but the brain – but let’s not get carried away just yet!
On the other hand, there also appears a natural sequence of depression, inactivity and sluggishness, a generalized reduction in body activity and stimulation – hey presto, bones aren’t stimulated or stressed either, and get weaker [like being in zero gravity].
Good things though – encouraging exercise, stimulation and general health – great, and holistic!-
Ross, you make some excellent points. I love how Save Our Bones community members are thinkers! That’s what I always encourage, and I am glad to see you’re raising thought-provoking questions.
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please will you repeat the breakfast of a banana., sweet potato ,oatmeal..Ireally enjoyed this .thank you..