Osteoporosis: nutrition.

Nutrition has important potential for the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis. Ensuring the adequacy of calcium intake is central to any program of osteoporosis control, but it must be considered in the context of the many factors, including other nutrients, diseases, and drugs, which influence calcium absorption, utilization, and excretion. The dietary consumption of calcium by large segments of the U.S. population remains inadequate. More attention must be paid not only to increasing calcium intake, but also to maximizing its availability from food sources and its retention by the body. As individuals age, it becomes increasingly difficult to maintain adequate calcium balance; dietary selection must be made with special care for older persons to ensure that all of the nutrients are consumed in sufficient quantities and that neither excessive weight loss nor weight gain occurs.