Breaking bones. Is there anything we can do about it?
Some months ago I fell on the concrete driveway - came down heavy on my left side, managed to keep my head from connecting too hard, but my glasses dug into my face and I got a black eye. Other that there was little damage – hardly a bruise. Boy was I thankful. I picked myself up, looked around to see if I needed to get embarrassed because someone saw me do this clumsy stunt and went back to doing my chores.
But I still wonder why I didn’t break a bone or two, or even bruise badly where I landed, considering that I am 85 years old. It wasn’t a gentle subsidence onto the driveway, it was quite a forceful fall. I went down like a sack of potatoes.
A big concern as we get older is breaking bones. Our balance is not as good, our vision is not as good, our coordination is not as good…
Bones are made of calcium, mainly I think we all know that, but not everyone knows that there is a lot of protein in bones too. Calcium makes for rigid strength, proteins for flexibility. Bones need both.
How much protein do we need to keep our bones, and the rest of us, healthy? The answer to that is: take your weight in pounds and divide by half. That gives you a ballpark figure of how many grams of protein you need daily - at least. Are you getting enough? Check it out. There are lots of websites to help you do this.
This is all part of self care. I make sure I have enough of both and believe that is why I didn't break a bone when I did my driveway stunt. So thankful!
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Since breaking these metatarsal bones I'm really going to be extra cognizant of what I eat to protect my bones as much as I can.
Now I'm scared that I'm going to do this again. When my foot finally heals and I'm back to walking normal again will I feel as safe? I sure hope so.
I'm not a great eater. When I do eat I make healthy choices but I've always been a picker, not someone who eats big, hearty meals. Given a choice I'd just as soon pop a calcium pill to be honest. I have been eating a lot of chia lately. I've heard that it's a source of protein and I do like my yogurt and cheese. Never was a big meat eater though.
But thx for bringing this up Golden. Perfect timing for me!
I had 2 lab puppies and they went 2 ways at a fast pace while going down a dirt embankment, I was holding both leashes. I hit hard and ALL I could think of was, "Did anyone see me?" Not "Am I broken or bleeding?"
Such great information. I am a bit obsessive about feeding us enough protein, calcium is easier to get passively with our diet. I believe I have avoided broken bones because of this.
Especially since I was diagnosed and treated for osteopenia in my early 30s.
Dd "What do you want for breakfast?"
Oldest son "Toast and jam."
Dd "You can't have just toast and jam. There's not enough protein in it."
Me *fist pump* "Yay, I did it."
I am sure the diet you follow has prevented breaks. Good for you.
I am so sorry that you fell. It could have ended up being so much worse.
I loved cycling. It was nothing for me to ride for miles and miles and miles, daily, just for fun. I cycled like that for most of my life, since a young teen.
Anyway, I hopped on my bicycle for my usual ride and there was debris in the road that I didn’t see. Down I went, hard!
I actually saw my open compound fracture occur when I hit the street. I went into shock though and didn’t feel any pain right away.
Fortunately, a guy that was driving right behind me stopped to help and I told him that I was fine! LOL
He looked at me kind of funny and then said, “Lady, you are not fine, I saw you fall. You are in shock and I am going to call 911 for you and wait with you until an ambulance arrives.”
I said to him, “ What about my bike? I can’t leave my bike in the street! This dear man took my bicycle to my home. He called my husband and filled him in about my accident and waited with me until help arrived.
By the time I got into the ambulance the shock had worn off and I was screaming in pain and yelled at the driver to stop hitting so many bumps! LOL 😆
The guy riding in the back with me was trying to calm me down and said he knew that I was in pain but that I couldn’t scream at the driver.
The driver screamed back saying, “I am sorry but I can’t help hitting the bumps and I am trying to get you to the ER as fast as I can.
As soon as I got to the ER I was screaming for meds but they wouldn’t give me any until the doctor came in.
As soon as the surgeon walked in and saw both of my bones broken he screamed at them to give me meds immediately!
I had surgery, steel rods on both bones. My ortho surgeon said after the surgery that I would be paralyzed. I didn’t believe him but he was right.
My parents came to see me in the hospital the next day. Even with the morphine drip I was in pain. The doctor said that with my injury the morphine would only take the edge off. Later on I had intense muscle spasms.
My mom says, “Honey, you don’t look comfortable. Let me adjust your bed.” I said, “Please, Mom don’t touch anything because I just got in a position that I can sort of tolerate the pain.” Of course, she ignored me and started pushing my hospital bed buttons.
I had to ask my dad to make her stop.
At least I waited until I was 44 to break my first bones!
After three months of aggressive physical therapy I made it through. Some permanent damage but most of my range of motion came back. No grip strength though.
My ortho surgeon told me to switch to an exercise bike after my accident because if I broke my arm again he wouldn’t be able to fix it.
I get searched at the airport because of all the metal in me. I tell them ahead of time but they search me anyway.
If you stick a bone in acid and leave it for long enough the calcium will leach out and you will be left with a "rubbery" bendable "bone". which is protein.
I know falling and breaking bones is a big issue for seniors. I am more cautious than I used to be.
In the last years the recommended amount of protein for seniors has been increased. You need more as you get older to keep your body in balance. That's not always easy for seniors so it is important to have an idea what it means in real life.
For example a150 pound woman needs at least 75 gms of protein and it should be spread out between all three meals.
In actual food terms that could be; 1 egg (6 gm), 1 tbsp peanut butter (5 gm) , 1 cup skim milk (8 gm), 6 oz Greek yogurt (18 gm),
1 3 ounce serving of chicken (28 gm), 3 oz tuna (22 gm)
which would give you 87 gm protein - about right,
It's not that hard and very important for your bones, and more.
And if any of you are taking Boniva, check with your doc on taking a break from it. My mom took it for many years and studies show that it causes very brittle bones that will break easily and the breaks are more shattered so more difficult to fix. After the research mom's doc took her off of it. She never broke any bones, thank goodness.
I saw where you wrote that your mom laughed when someone fell.
Sometimes, scenarios can be funny looking! Like a scene out of a movie.
One time I was out to eat with a group of friends, during this time of year, for a holiday dinner and gift exchange.
Anyway, we all ordered cocktails before dinner. The restaurant was packed. The waiter was super busy and was rushing to serve our drinks to us. He slipped and all of our drinks went flying in a million different directions.
Well, my friend, Cindy and I started laughing hysterically because it looked so crazy! Another friend started screaming at us that we shouldn’t be laughing because he could be hurt.
The waiter got up and saw Cindy and I laughing and he started cracking up too. He wasn’t hurt, a bit embarrassed and he obviously had a terrific sense of humor.
We gave him a huge tip!
I used to be anorexic when I was in my early teens and never have had a healthy relationship with food. If I over indulge one day I'll eat next to nothing the next two days. Very bad I know. I should know better but old habits die hard.
Yet my Mom had many falls but never broke a bone. When I saw her grocery list I knew why, milk... cottage cheese... regular cheese... yogurt... ice cream.
Unfortunately, I am lactose intolerant. I do take 2 Tums every day, those I can tolerate but not calcium tablets.