The current thought is that if anyone has a poor diet and little exercise during their 20's and 30's, they are more likely to develop osteoporosis later in life because they didn't develop good bone structure when they were young. I was reviewing some nutrition literature recently and came across an article from the renowned nutrition center at Tufts University stating that potassium, magnesium, and fruits and vegetables in the diet are helpful in maintaining bone density. I believe that anything that helps to maintain bone density without ingesting large quantities of calcium is the best way to go. Fruits and vegetables are both good sources of magnesium and potassium. The highest concentration of magnesium is found in seeds, nuts, and green vegetables.
Fruits are relatively poor in magnesium, except for bananas, which are rich in magnesium.
As for potassium, it is present in most all foods but richest in fruits and vegetables. The authors of the article found that these nutrients help to keep our bones more alkaline, which in turn helps to prevent calcium loss from bones and thereby maintain bone mineral density. We also keep hearing about the value of fruits and veggies in our diet to help prevent cardiovascular disease and to keeping our cholesterol down. So there seems to be several reasons for all of us to try to eat less red meat and to eat more fruits and veggies. The basic recommendation to eat five servings of fruit and veggies each day seems to be good advice for everyone and perhaps even better advice to anyone with PXE-at any age.