Exercises And Healthy Food Habit: Nutrients For Tendons And Ligaments

Tendons and ligaments integrate your musculoskeletal system by binding bone and muscle. Essential nutrients like minerals and vitamins keep these tissues in your body healthy. While exercises are essential for good muscle tone, food nutrients supply the daily requirement. Carbohydrates, proteins and fats will constitute our food but one must ensure that they are in the ratio 30—40—30. 

Strengthen your musculoskeletal system

Musculoskeletal system consists of bones and muscles. This is a framework for housing your organs and is covered by flesh and skin. Food for the skeleton or nourishment for the bone is as essential as nutrients for tendons and ligaments.

    Components of musculoskeletal system

A)  Tendon: This tissue consists of collagen fibers and helps you move your bones and joints. Tendon connects muscle to bone.

B)   Ligament: Strong connective tissue that have elasticity to allow movement of bones at the joints. They prevent movement beyond the range of the joint. The connection is between bone and bone.

C)   Cartilage: Cartilage is your bone’s shock absorber. It is present at the ends and in between bones. It is soft and aims to prevent attrition of bone.

D)  Bone: Solid framework of rigid members such as femur, humerus, ribs and vertebrae that supports all other parts of the human body.

Bones are storehouses for calcium and participate in calcium homeostasis. It also stores phosphates (http://www.slideshare.net/mcasade8/the-musculoskeletal-system-12157463?related=1).

E)  Muscle: These bunch of tissue such as triceps (arms) or hamstring (legs) help mobilize the joint and control movement.

Amount of nutrients required

1)   Vitamins

a)   Vitamin A: Fat-soluble, vitamin A is either preformed vitamin A as found in animal meat, fish and poultry products or it is provitamin A as found in fruits, vegetables and many plant products. Recommended intake is 5,000 IUs. Vitamin A is necessary for good eyesight and for reproduction process.

b)   Vitamin B: Vitamin B6 and vitamin B12 are required for cognition function. However, do not take excess of vitamin B6. Recommended dose is 1.3 mg if you are less than 50 years of age and 1.5 – 1.7 mg if you are older. Most people can take high amounts of vitamin B12 without any side effects.

c)   Vitamin C: Essential for bones, Vitamin C is found in abundance in milk and the required daily dosage is 1000 mg. If you are above 58 years of age, you should take 1200 mg at least.

d)   Vitamin D: Other essential vitamin for bones, Vitamin D is required minimum 200 International Units (IUs) if you are less than 58 years and 500 – 600 IUs for older people.

e)   Vitamin E: Required by the body immune system and for the skin, vitamin E is required in doses of 400 IUs on a daily basis. Vitamin E is fat-soluble and so it should be taken with food.  Long-term use increased possibility of dying from all causes including stroke.

2)   Minerals

a.     Calcium: Most abundant mineral in the body, daily requirement is 1000 mg for those below 50 and 1200 mg for older people.

b.   Magnesium: In addition to keeping the bones strong, magnesium also helps body maintain a steady heart beat, augment the immune system, maintain normal muscle and nerve function, regulate blood glucose levels and in metabolizing proteins and energy production. Recommended dosage is 315 mg for women and 415 mg for men. 

c.    Zinc: Daily requirement of zinc is 15 mg. One has to be careful of overdoses as this may cause anemia. About 60% of the zinc is present in skeletal tissues and 30% is found in bones. It is also important in normal growth of cells, development and DNA synthesis.

3)   Others

                                         i.  Chondroitin: Naturally occurring substance in bones, chondroitin supplements is 800 mg. If your body weight is more than 100 pounds, then you can take 1,200 mg.

                                    ii.     Glucosamine: This supplement is taken in doses of 1,000 mg (less than 100 pounds) and 1,500 mg (greater than 100 pounds).

                                          iii.     Proteins: A person needs 0.4g (for sedentary lifestyle) and 0.45g to 0.7g of proteins per pound body weight (for active lifestyle). 

Choose the right food item

Foods having essential nutrients minerals and vitamins (Source: https://reedir.arsnet.usda.gov/codesearchwebapp)

i)              Oyster, crab and shellfish have good amounts of zinc.

ii)            Beef liver and animal organs are good sources of vitamin A but also have high levels of cholesterol.

iii)          Salmon provides vitamin A. Sardines provide calcium and vitamin D needed for your bones. Salmon also has omega-3 fatty acids that is beneficial to your heart.

iv)          Fruits such as mango, apricot and cantaloupe are rich in vitamin A and magnesium. Bananas have good amounts of magnesium.  

v)            Green leafy vegetables: Broccoli, carrot, squash has lots of vitamin A. Spinach is your source of calcium, magnesium and vitamin E. One cup gives you more than one-fifth of your daily need of calcium. In addition, it has vitamin A, iron and fiber.

vi)          Diary products are the most common source of vitamin A. Milk has calcium and three glasses will provide you all the calcium you need for the day. Same with cheese, it provides calcium and zinc. Eat one slab of 2.5 ounces to fulfill half your calcium requirements.

vii)        Sunlight and yogurt are good sources of vitamin D. Yogurt provide about one-third of the calcium requirement and one-sixth the vitamin D requirement for the day.

viii)      Vegetable oils are good sources for vitamin E.

ix)          Nuts provide vitamin E required for skin and for body immune system. It also provides magnesium and zinc.

x)            Whole grain cereals provide magnesium and zinc.

Recovery from ligament injuries

Amount of calcium and vitamin A for persons recovering from injuries is more. Intake of proteins also helps since proteins are required for tissue building process. Eating colorful fruits helps heal inflammation and torn ligaments. Green vegetables such as bell peppers, cauliflower, cabbage and tomatoes help cure the patient through their richness in vitamin C. Nutritious food is essential.

Exercise essential for strengthening tendons and ligaments

Exercises keep you body in shape by toning muscles. Essentially, you are reducing the amount of stress that your body undergoes. When muscles are not conditioned properly, the body sags. Weight is distributed away from the center of gravity and thus effort required will be more to move the body around.

Loosely connected muscles have to be tightened

When muscles are tightened, the body mass is more centered, meaning you require less energy to move around. Ideally exercises such as light jogging and mild stretching will help your body maintain good muscle mass.

1)   Light to moderate jogs

2)   Mild stretching

3)   Weight training if you want

Body keeps putting on weight during change of seasons or when there is a celebration or festival. During festivals, one tends to eat more sweets and forget to maintain a watch over diet and exercises. India has several periods during which festivals are celebrated.

Exercises for mornings are different from those for evenings

Evening exercises are more rapid stretching kind of exercises while morning exercises tend to be mild static or dynamic stretching kind of exercises. Make changes to your environment to improve your food habits and health. People who are training for an event can use a personal trainer too. Most of all you need a proper exercise and fitness regimen.

Other sources are given here.

(Source: http://www.leastening.com/articles/sport-exercise/nutrition-for-tendons-and-ligaments.html)

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