More Osteoporosis Seen With Raw Foods Diet

Raw-Food Vegetarians Thinner, Get Less Calcium

By Miranda Hitti, WebMD Medical News

March 28, 2005 -- Raw-food vegetarian diets are associated with osteoporosis, a new study shows. Osteoporosis occurs when aging bone is broken down faster than it can be replaced, a process known as bone turnover. Doctors diagnose the bone-weakening disease with a bone mineral density test. The study compared the bone health of 18 vegetarians who ate only raw foods with a similar group that ate a standard American diet. All participants were about 54 years old.

The vegetarians had a couple of strikes against them:
Thinner. Their average body mass index (BMI) was 20, compared with 25 for their peers. Both are within normal BMI range, but thinness is a risk factor for osteoporosis.
Lowered calcium and vitamin D in their diets. On average, the vegetarians ate about 580 milligrams of calcium per day, compared with 1,093 for their peers. Vitamin D from foods was also much lower in the vegetarians. Both nutrients are essential for building strong bone.