Deborah Jeffrey: Hi, my name is Debbie Jeffrey. I am a Registered Licensed Dietitian. Today we are talking about dietary supplements and understanding their use for men and women. Right now, we'll be talking about vitamins and minerals that men may not get enough of in their diet and need to supplement.

We hear a lot about bone health in women but we don't hear a lot about bone health in men. This is a critical issue for men as well as women because many men don't get enough calcium and vitamin D in their diet. Can men get osteoporosis? Yes, they do. The National Institute of Health estimates that there is about 2 million men with osteoporosis. As you may know, osteoporosis is a disease where the bones are weak and are more prone to fractures. By the age of 50, men are more likely to have an osteoporosis related fracture than they are to develop prostrate cancer. By the age of 65, men loose bone mass at the same rate that women do and it's estimated by the age of 75, a third of the men have osteoporosis. So it is a concern.

The recommendation for men for calcium is the same as women, it's 1,000 milligrams for men under 50 which in terms of food equates to 3, 8 ounce servings of milk or yogurt per day. After 50, the recommendation goes up to 120 milligrams of calcium, which is four servings of milk or yogurt or some other high calcium food. But many men don't get this amount of calcium, so they may consider having to take a calcium supplement. Along with calcium for bone health, vitamin D is needed and again this is something that many men don't get enough of in their diet. The role of vitamin D, it's necessary for bone health because it helps the body absorb calcium. Vitamin D is unique in that the body can convert sunlight, when it hits the skin, into vitamin D and the recommendation is that arms, hands and face be exposed for 10-15 minutes, 2-3 times a week and this would be without sunscreen. So if you don't get the recommended amount of calcium and vitamin D in your diet, you might want to consider a supplement. Next we are going to talk about how to read the supplement label.