Eat vegetables and fruit for bone health | Combat osteoporosis naturally

For more than thirty years our doctors and mothers have told us to drink more milk and take calcium supplements for strong bones. Now, evidence indicates this hasn't been working. The countries where the most milk and products are consumed have the highest incidence of bone fractures in old age. It's in Asian countries, where consumption of milk-based products is lowest, that the strongest bones are found.

This is probably partially due to a population that stays physically active in old age, continuing with load-bearing exercise which is so good for our bones. But it is also due to diet. The high protein diets many of us consume actually lead to weak bones, because amino acids, when broken down, enter the bloodstream and make it more acidic; calcium is leached from bones to neutralize the blood's ph. (Acidic fruits don't do that, their acids are dealt with in the stomach.)

The guest said that calcium on its own can't build bones - "if our bones were built of calcium, they would be chalk" - that it takes a combination of more than a dozen nutrients and trace elements to build healthy bones, and they are found in, ta da, vegetables and fruits.

Prunes are packed with "bone-building phenolic compounds" critical in maintaining bone density. They contain boron, potassium and iron, vital in maintaining healthy bones after menopause, and they also provide magnesium (studies suggest that people suffering from depression can be suffering from a magnesium deficiency).

Boron is a trace mineral important to bone vitality: you can get your daily requirement from half a cup of prunes. It's found in other foods, cabbage being one.

Chop up 1/4 cabbage into whatever shapes float your boat (I made narrow shreds and then cut the shreds into 1" lengths). Dice half an onion. Put those two vegetables into a pyrex container, add a splash of water or chicken stock, and microwave them for about 4-5 minutes.

Meanwhile, chop as much green pepper as you want (hint: everything's gonna shrink so cut up more than you think you need) and bits of whatever other vegetables you have around. If you use carrot, it should get the microwave treatment.

Put a teaspoon or two of olive oil in a big frying pan, dump the vegetables in, add another splash of chicken stock or wine, and stir them frequently over moderately high heat until they're as soft as you like them.

My son had bought a container of pre-peeled garlic in June and I thought it was ridiculous, but four months later it still seemed fine so I added a couple cloves of garlic put through a press.

While the vegetables softened, I sliced the chicken sausage. (Put the other three sausages in a zip-lock bag and freeze them NOT TOUCHING EACH OTHER. That way they'll thaw faster next time.)

I tossed the chicken slices into the pan, grated on a little bit of cheese and added a little more stock, and cooked it up and ate it all.

Slice almost any vegetable into thinnish pieces: carrots (even old ones will be great), squash, green peppers, red peppers, baby potatoes, brussel sprouts, mushrooms, onions... toss with some olive oil (see below for the wonderful lemon-infused olive oil my daughter uses), garlic, salt and pepper. Spread on a baking tin. I add 1/4 cup of water but lots of people don't. Cook at high heat until browned.

1 lb carrots
2 eggs
1 scallion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves
salt and pepper to taste
1/2-3/4 cup matzo meal

Preheat oven to 425°F. Clean, scrape, and grate carrots; salt and allow to drain for at least 20 minutes. Squeeze as dry as you can.

Beat eggs and mix all ingredients, adding enough matza meal so the mixture is pretty firm.

Spray two baking sheets with non-stick spray OR oil the pans well. Scoop up about 1/4 cup of your latke mixture and press it onto the pan - flatten VERY flat with spatula.

Bake 15 minutes; turn latkes; and bake 10 minutes longer. Serve very hot with applesauce or sour cream.

I sometimes eat a pound of brussel sprouts for my meal.

Cut the little ends off 1 lb of brussel sprouts, wash them and cut them in half, removing any tough outer leaves in the process.

Put them in a 1 quart or 6-cup pyrex casserole with close fitting lid. Put in half a cup of water, put the lid on, and microwave for 6-7 minutes.

Drain them, put them in a saucepan with 3/4 teaspoon of butter, a squirt of lemon juice, salt and pepper, and a clove of garlic minced if you are so inclined.

Cover them and shake them until the butter is melted and the brussel sprout halves are a little bit browned. Add grated cheese if you want, or more lemon. Mmm!

This was my late breakfast the next morning. I wasn't planning on cooking, but frankly, my stomach just rebelled at the idea of more corn flakes. So I gave in to its demands.

Ingredients:

• Somewhat less than 1/4 of an 8 ounce box of pasta (I used a handful of thin spaghetti about the diameter of a nickel)
  
• 2 cups of cabbage or broccoli, chopped as you prefer
  
• 1 egg
  
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
  
• garlic to taste
  
• chicken broth or wine or some other flavorful liquid
  
• your favorite cheese for grating
  
• optional: sauce of any kind

Put an egg into at least 6 cups of water and bring to a boil. Boil long enough to mostly cook the egg.

Add pasta, cook till not quite done. Add cabbage or broccoli and cook for a couple more minutes. Take out the egg and peel it. Drain the pasta and vegetables.

Heat the oil, dump in the pasta and veggies, salt and pepper, a minced clove of garlic, and about 1/4 cup of chicken stock. Cook on high till the stock is mostly gone, stirring occasionally. If you like it a little softer, add some more stock and cook it down again.

Cut up the egg and stir it in. Top with some grated cheese and/or sauce of your choice.