Research Unveils The Antioxidant Strategy To Protect Your Bones From Oxidative Stress

Vivian Goldschmidt, MA Lifestyle Nutrition

Evidence-Based
6 min Read
How-Oxidative-Stress-Harms-Your-Bones-And-Why-Your-Doctor-May-Not-Know-About-The-Solution

Bone loss commonly accompanies aging, but it doesn't have to. In this article, you'll learn about one of the drivers of age-related bone loss: oxidative stress. This form of cellular damage, caused by compounds called reactive oxygen species (ROS), accumulates with age.

However, the body has a natural way to fight ROS and protect bones: antioxidants. We'll look at a study on the role of antioxidants in reducing oxidative stress.

Finally, you'll discover why these aren't facts you're likely to learn at your doctor's office. It has to do with a worldwide deficit in the education of new medical professionals. Fortunately, you can learn about nutrition and how our diets can protect our bones to prevent and reverse osteoporosis.

Studies Show Aging Accumulates Oxidative Stress, Accelerating Bone Loss

Bone loss is associated with aging. One major mechanism that connects getting older with losing bone mass is an increase in oxidative stress. Studies have found evidence that oxidative stress and inflammation increase with age and also increase during menopause, due to decreases in estrogen levels.1

Oxidative stress is caused by radical oxygen species (ROS), also called free radicals. Free radicals damage cells by stealing electrons from their molecules, leading to cellular instability. Studies have found that when ROS damage cells responsible for the bone-remodeling process, they are marked for destruction. Cellular damage and destruction hinder the generation of new cells essential for bone formation. 2

Inflammation, which accompanies and exacerbates ROS levels, also has a deleterious effect on bone. A 2023 study published in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences confirmed that oxidative stress and inflammation can be involved in the development of osteoporosis through their impact on osteoblasts and osteoclasts, the cells responsible for depositing new bone mass, and resorbing old bone mass, respectively.3

Fortunately, oxidation has a natural counterbalance: antioxidants.

Synopsis

Many studies have confirmed that oxidative stress and inflammation occur more with old age and menopause. Oxidative stress damages molecules, leading to cellular destruction. This action harms cells responsible for the bone remodeling process, resulting in bone loss and osteoporosis.

Dietary Antioxidants Combat Oxidative Stress And Protect Bones

Antioxidants are compounds that have an electron that can donate to ROS, stabilizing free radicals and preventing them from damaging other molecules.

Studies have confirmed that antioxidants help activate the production of osteoblasts– the cells responsible for depositing new bone mass and supporting bone mineralization – and reduce osteoclast activity– which resorbs bone. 4

A variety of nutrients and compounds have antioxidant properties and exert this positive influence on bone metabolism. There are two sources of antioxidants: those produced internally (endogenous) production and those obtained from diet and supplementation (exogenous).

Antioxidants produced by the body also depend on a well-balanced diet for the vitamins and minerals that support the production process. For example, the Foundation Supplements beta-carotene (Vitamin A), riboflavin (Vitamin B2), and magnesium support the production of glutathione, known as the “master antioxidant”.

Polyphenols and anthocyanins are the most abundant antioxidant compound classes in the human diet. They are found in fruits, vegetables, cereals, legumes, chocolate, tea, coffee, and wine. Studies with animals and cultured cell lines have identified the role of polyphenols in preventing cardiovascular diseases, cancer, neurodegenerative diseases, diabetes, and osteoporosis.

According to a study conducted by the USDA these are the 21 most antioxidant-rich foods:5

1. Small red beans
2. Wild blueberries*
3. Red kidney beans*
4. Pinto beans*
5. Cultivated blueberries*
6. Cranberries*
7. Artichokes*
8. Blackberries*
9. Prunes*
10. Raspberries*
11. Strawberries*
12. Red delicious apples*
13. Granny Smith apples*
14. Pecans*
15. Sweet cherries*
16. Black plums
17. Russet potatoes
18. Black beans*
19. Plums
20. Gala apples*
21. Dark leafy greens*

* Foundation Food

Antioxidant supplementation is also possible. The Save Institute recommends taking 50mg per day of the powerful antioxidant ubiquinone, also known as coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10). Many vitamins that play important roles in bone health also function as antioxidants and can be part of your supplementation regimen, including beta-carotene (Vitamin A), Vitamin C, and Vitamin E.

Synopsis

You can fight oxidation and support the bone remodeling process by incorporating more foods into your diet that are rich in antioxidants and micronutrients that fuel antioxidant production. You can supplement your diet with ubiquinone (CoQ10), and Vitamins A, C, and E to additionally boost antioxidant levels.

Medical School Leaves Doctors Clueless About Nutrition

The power of diet to counteract oxidative damage sounds like the sort of information that a doctor would know– but they usually don't.

A 2019 report published in The Lancet conducted a systematic analysis of 24 published studies assessing recent medical school graduates’ nutrition knowledge, evaluating medical school nutrition curricula, and examining medical students’ and graduates' perceptions of nutrition education.

Their analysis showed “that nutrition is insufficiently incorporated into medical education, regardless of country, setting, or year of medical education.”6 This broad deficiency in nutrition education affects students' knowledge, skills, and confidence to implement nutrition as a tool for patient care.

A report in Academic Medicine found that on average, U.S. medical schools only offer 19.6 hours of nutrition education across four years of medical education, less than 1% of total lecture hours. Even the limited nutrition content researchers found was not practical information about diets or food-related decisions but rather technical aspects of biochemistry.7

The problem is not uniquely American. A 2018 study found that regardless of the country, the nutrition education of medical students is insufficient.8

This deficiency in medical education leaves doctors without the knowledge or tools to apply scientific research on the power of dietary interventions. Fortunately, we can access this research and analysis ourselves and learn about how we can use diet to combat oxidation and protect our bones.

Synopsis

Studies have found that medical school students are grossly undereducated about nutrition, with as little as 1% of their lecture hours devoted to the subject. This problem occurs worldwide at medical schools and leaves doctors without the knowledge or tools to apply scientific research on the power of dietary interventions.

What This Means To You

Oxidative damage poses a direct threat to your bones and the threat increases with age. A diet rich in antioxidants and micronutrients that support antioxidant production can counterbalance this increase in free radicals. Our doctors haven't been taught about this critically important part of how our bodies work, leaving us to independently learn from the work of scientists and researchers.

The Save Institute makes nutrition a foundational pillar of building strong bones and provides the information you need to learn about it. The Osteoporosis Reversal Program provides in-depth information about dietary and supplemental antioxidants and how to use them to protect your bones.

Together with a pH-balanced diet, regular exercise, and simple lifestyle changes, antioxidants are part of the toolkit for building stronger bones and an active, independent future.

References

1 https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9963528/#:~:text=Indeed%2C%20both%20oxidative%20stress%20and,26%2C27%2C28%5D

2 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0753332223006248

3 https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9963528/#:~:text=Indeed%2C%20both%20oxidative%20stress%20and,26%2C27%2C28%5D

4 https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5726212/

5 https://www.ars.usda.gov/research/publications/publication/?seqNo115=165081

6 https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanplh/article/PIIS2542-5196(19)30171-8/fulltext

7 https://journals.lww.com/academicmedicine/Fulltext/2015/07000/Nutrition_Education_in_an_Era_of_Global_Obesity.11.aspx

8 https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S2542519619301718