Nearly 44 million people in the U.S. are living with osteoporosis. The disease, which causes bones to be thin and brittle, strikes women more often than men. It's never too early to make the lifestyle changes that will help develop strong bones:

• Weight-bearing activity. Exercises such as walking, jumping rope, and jogging help build bone. Strength training is also important for bone health.
  
• Calcium. Eat a diet rich in calcium and be sure to get appropriate amounts of vitamin D (through sun exposure and fortified foods -- supplements are also available).
  
• Salt. Limit salt intake as it causes your bones to excrete more calcium.
  
• Break bad habits. Smoking can be bad for bone health as can drinking alcohol and drinking soda.

Check out the gallery for age-specific bone health recommendations.

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Once, I was at my son's school during recess and noticed that (other than a few exceptions) it was mostly boys playing kickball and girls sitting in small groups around the jungle gym chatting and playing cats cradle. At the time, I didn't think much of it, but I was reminded of it the day when I read an article about how young and old females aren't as active as males.

Researchers from Liverpool John Moores University followed 10 and 11-year-old children during recess and found that boys tend to engage in more active play than girls. On the flip side of the coin, another study found that women over age 70 are less likely to be active than men.

It's important for everyone to be active. But it's certainly important for girls (during the formative years when their bones are growing) and older women (who need to maintain bone density) to be physically active.

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Fitness is important at any age -- it keeps your body looking and feeling good, it helps prevent a host of chronic conditions, and it boosts your energy. But as you approach the big 4-0, there are some additional reasons why exercise is important.

Exercise helps alleviate some of the symptoms of perimenopause, which can begin anytime during your 40s. Exercise is also a proactive measure against the estrogen loss that will occur later during menopause; it can help prevent related problems such as bone loss. Menopause may seem far away -- but being active now will make it easier when menopause comes knocking on your door.

Revolution Health has fitness tips for women in their 40s:

• Increase your core strength, balance, and flexibility. Improving these areas and maintaining them will help prevent falls and stiff, achy joints as you get older. Activities such as Pilates and yoga will help. AOL Health has tips on strength and flexibility exercises.
• Do weight-bearing exercise. Bolster your bone density by participating in weight-bearing activities such as jumping rope, aerobics, tennis, and jogging.
• Keep up the cardio. Cardio workouts will help keep your heart strong and help you maintain a healthy weight.

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Occupational Therapist and uber fit mom Wendy Alexander knows her stuff and shares a simple strategy for staying strong and fit! Who knew it could be so easy?

To learn if yoga is right for you, the top 10 things a wellness chef wouldn't eat if you paid her, and to check out more health and fitness videos ...

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Sometimes I worry about my bones. My grandma had osteoporosis, and my mom is taking measures to keep from falling prey to the same condition. Seems I should follow suit. Here's how I might bone up on staying strong, according to RemedyLife.com.

• Eat a diet rich in calcium and take a vitamin D supplement.
• Get at least 30 minutes of exercise, like walking and running, most days of the week.
• Engage in strength-training at least two days per week.
• Get a bone density screening at the time of menopause (or around age 50).
• Limit salt intake -- it causes the body to excrete calcium.
• Limit soft drinks.
• Don't smoke.
• Don't consume more than one or two alcoholic drinks per day.

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As both men and women age, a decrease in bone density typically occurs. Strength training and a diet rich in calcium and vitamin D can help slow down this process, but nothing can prevent it entirely. Making matters worse for women, according to an article in Women's Health magazine, is the use of oral contraceptives.

Citing a study published in the journal Osteoporosis International, the article points out the potential link between the Pill and a lower degree of bone mineral density. Based on the study, study subjects who had been on birth control pills for an average of 3.5 years had three percent less bone density at the spine and two percent less at the hips.

Researchers aren't sure what causes the Pill to have this effect, but they stress the importance of getting at least 1,000 milligrams of calcium per day and following a resistance training exercise program to help keep bones strong.

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We've all heard about the many benefits of drinking green tea, but what about all of the other varieties available? If you're bored of always drinking the same cuppa but still want to get some health benefits out of your morning brew, why not try white tea?

According to this, white tea offers a range of health benefits and would be a great option for those wanting to switch from the black or green varieties. Among its many benefits:

• Helps lower blood pressure and cholesterol and so it looks after your heart.
• Full of antioxidants, which help prevent a range of cancers including colon and stomach.
• Creates a stronger immune system as it's thought to kill bacteria and viruses, and also lowers stress.
• Contains fluoride which helps keep teeth strong.
• Studies have shown that it improves bone density.

Not bad for a cup or two a day!

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If you want your kids to have stronger bones and avoid osteoporosis later in life, encouraging gymnastics and other high-impact sports activities before they hit puberty could really help. Research shows that girls who participate in gymnastics, particularly artistic gymnastics, have much greater bone density than girls who are active in other less strenuous activities.

The keys are jumping, sprinting, and rapid direction changes, which all put stress on the bones and encourage them to grow stronger. So some sports besides gymnastics can also be good for bone development such as basketball, soccer, and lacrosse to name a few.

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It seems like nothing is as simple as it should be, even building healthy bones. It's true that eating right and exercising regularly starting early in life can keep your bones healthy and prevent osteoporosis, but it's also true that you can overdo it. If you diet too severely while exercising too rigorously you can actually make it harder for your body to form new bone, instead of easier. Which means when you're older your bones will be weaker.

It's all about balance. Exercise is great for bones, but only if you eat enough to provide the fuel your body needs. What you don't want to do is run yourself into the ground, because even if you don't have major symptoms now you'll end up paying for it later.

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Apparently they can, in post-menopausal women anyway. In an enormous study that looked at over 36,000 women over 7 years, calcium and vitamin D specifically were shown to reduce the pounds gained in the years following menopause. Not by a lot, but every little bit helps. And of course calcium and vitamin D are also known for helping maintain or even improve bone health.

Whether women choose to get their calcium and vitamin D from their diets or from pill supplements is up to them, but experts are warning that is isn't a magic weight loss trick. Women will of course still need to watch what they eat and exercise to keep that "muffin top" in check.

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Osteoporosis and weak bones are generally thought of as a women's issue, and although women are 4 times more likely to suffer from "brittle bones," with 1 in 12 men getting the disease it's a serious issue for them too.

A common culprit for women who have weak bones is the decline in estrogen after menopause, but what about for men? Surprisingly, most men have higher levels of estrogen than most post-menopausal women, which may be why they generally have lower risk. But those men who have a lower number of active estrogen metabolites also have a correspondingly higher risk of developing lower bone density (low -- high -- low -- did that make sense?).

But don't worry guys, there are no plans yet to start generally prescribing estrogen hormone replacement for men. Not yet anyway...

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As if brittle bones and osteoporosis aren't big enough problems already, now a new study shows that some common antidepressant medications can increase the risk for developing fragile bones. The medication culprits are selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI's) -- several common ones include Prozac, Zoloft, and Paxil.

A group of Canadians age 50 and older were tested, and those taking SSRIs had 4% less bone mineral density in their hip bones and had double the chance of breaking a bone (or bones). The problem seems to be in how the drugs affect critical bone-forming cells called osteoblasts, interfering with bone growth and bone mass. At this point the only recommendations from the experts seem to be having awareness of this side-effect before starting any SSRI medication, and possibly taking bone density tests before and during the antidepressant therapy.

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