Bone Strength, Mitochondria, and Gut Health Linked
By Dr. Linda J. Dobberstein, DC, Board Certified in Clinical Nutrition
Think strong bones are just about calcium and vitamin D? Think again. Your bones are living, ever-changing structures influenced by far more than just minerals. Mitochondrial health, blood sugar balance, and even your gut microbiome all play important roles in bone remodeling. Understanding these connections can help you maintain strong, resilient bones for life. Read on to explore the science behind bone health and the key factors that keep your skeletal system strong.
Bones: An Architectural Remodeling Factory
A healthy adult has about 206 bones making up the skeleton. Infants have about 270 bones, some of which will fuse together as the child grows. Your bones must last you a lifetime and withstand all kinds of factors.
Bones perform six major functions: providing the human frame and supporting muscles, movement, protection of internal organs, production of blood cells, storage for minerals, and endocrine regulations.
To keep up with these demands, bones are in a continuous dynamic state of remodeling. At the core of this architectural remodeling factory are osteoclasts (break down), osteoblasts (builders), osteocytes (bone cells) and bone lining cells.
Bone remodeling occurs in response to physical activity, calcium homeostasis, and to repair from daily wear. It also occurs when there is an imbalance of activity between osteoblasts and osteoclasts.
Bone remodeling is influenced by cytokines, hormones, and activity. In addition, several other factors such as mitochondria health, blood sugar balance, gut microbiome, and melatonin also affect the bone remodeling processes. Supporting these factors helps maintain the natural balance between osteoblasts and osteoclasts.
Mitochondria Regulate the Bone Remodeling Process
When you think about mitochondria, things like muscles and energy might come to mind. These ATP factories provide essential energetic functions to meet the metabolic demands of bone remodeling. Just like muscles need energy to function, so do bones.
New discoveries in research show that mitochondrial health and activity provides a basis for maintaining the normal activity of osteoblasts and osteoclasts. Each bone cell has hundreds of mitochondria that support this function.
Inside osteoblast cells, mitochondrial activity is vital to support their mineralization function. In osteoclast cells, mitochondria help the repair and recycling process. When this balance is upset with high intensity or chronic stress, mitochondria activities are disrupted, causing increased programmed cell death altering the bone remodeling process.
Some of the factors that disrupt this mitochondrial remodeling balance include increased levels of inflammatory compounds, blood sugar and Advanced Glycation End products (AGEs), high sugar and high fat diets, steroid hormones from stress or medication, environmental toxins, drug toxicity, increased homocysteine levels, low estrogen levels, as well as insufficient and excess iron. In addition, depletion of glutathione and insufficient levels of other antioxidants contribute to mitochondrial stress and changes in bone remodeling.
Blood Sugar and Bones
Another factor that affects bone remodeling is glucose regulation. Glucose serves as a major source for bone development and growth and plays a crucial role in the skeletal system. Mitochondria burn glucose to make energy.
In states of blood sugar imbalance, bone breakdown by osteoclasts is amplified. This is in part due to increased free radicals and oxidative stress as well as a more acidic environment in the bone marrow.
Your Microbiome, Butyrate, and Bones
Another factor that affects bone density is its relationship with the gut microbiome and short chain fatty acids, like butyrate. This short chain fatty acid (SCFA) talks via the “gut-bone axis” and inhibits osteoclast activity and stimulates osteoblast bone building activity. SCFAs also regulate immune compounds that adjust inflammatory signals and responses that affect bones and other parts of the body.
Butyrate is produced by healthy gut flora when dietary fiber is consumed. Diets low in fiber, like the Western diet with ultra-processed foods, however, lead to decreased production of post-biotic SCFAs like butyrate. This shortfall affects bone density and much more.
Bones Require a Team of Nutrients
To manage the remodeling and maintenance of bones, a comprehensive approach is essential for optimal outcomes. Minerals, vitamins, antioxidants, phytonutrients, microbiome support, and other factors are required.
Minerals necessary for bone health include calcium, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus, iron, zinc, boron, and copper. Vitamins A, C, D, E, K and several B vitamins are required for bone health. Antioxidants and phytonutrients like turmeric, resveratrol, green tea, ginger, berries, boswellia, and many others provide multi-dimensional protective support.
The postbiotic butyrate along with prebiotics like FOS, probiotics such as Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus are essential too. Furthermore, healthy omega-3 and -6 oils with modest amounts of saturated fats also support bone density. Protein, collagen, and other structural compounds like hyaluronic acid, glucosamine, glutamine, and silica are required for quality bone structure.
All these nutrients play dynamic roles in regulation of osteoblast and osteoclast activity. Furthermore, these nutrients provide several critical supportive roles for blood sugar metabolism and mitochondrial activity.
Melatonin and Bones
Melatonin is another factor that affects bone health and is produced by mitochondria. This sleep hormone regulates receptor sites in bone and induces osteoblast activities. It is also a powerful antioxidant produced by mitochondria providing substantial protection against free radicals and oxidative stress in bones and mitochondria.
How to Strengthen Your Bones
With all these dynamics affecting the ongoing remodeling process of bones, it becomes readily apparent that the focus of only calcium and vitamin D misses the big picture required for strong, resilient bones.
Bones require diverse support with whole foods, physical activity, stress management, a well-balanced lifestyle, and supplemental support. These same essential elements are necessary for all parts of you including the gut microbiome, mitochondrial protection, and blood sugar metabolism.
Top Supplements to Optimize Bones
• Daily Bone Xcel or Daily Builder
• Daily Energy Multiple Vitamin
• Daily Protector Eye & Immune
• Daily Protein Plus or Collagen Peptides
Kids and adults alike need comprehensive support for a lifetime of strong bones and resiliency. Are you keeping up with your needs?
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