Dr. Vonda Wright

and adipose and everything as siloed organs that don't have much to do with each other except they live next to each other. The fact of the matter is, for instance, when we're talking about the musculoskeletal system—bone, tendon, ligament, muscle, fat, cartilage, muscle stem cells— They're all derived from the same stem cell, the mesenchymal stem cell. So they're not distant neighbors.

They're cousins. And they all speak in the same language. They may have different dialects. I was thinking about an example of this, you know, how in the UK, English is the language. But depending on what parish you live in or which country within the UK, English sounds very different. But it's the same language. So within musculoskeletal tissue, muscle and bone are not separate.

They're cousins. And they all speak in the same language. They may have different dialects. I was thinking about an example of this, you know, how in the UK, English is the language. But depending on what parish you live in or which country within the UK, English sounds very different. But it's the same language. So within musculoskeletal tissue, muscle and bone are not separate.

They are one ecosystem, such that... When muscle releases a protein called irisin, it talks to the bone. When bone releases a protein called osteocalcin, it talks to the muscle. But in the case of bone, osteocalcin, if we just stick with that protein, it talks to the whole body.

They are one ecosystem, such that... When muscle releases a protein called irisin, it talks to the bone. When bone releases a protein called osteocalcin, it talks to the muscle. But in the case of bone, osteocalcin, if we just stick with that protein, it talks to the whole body.

When your osteoblasts, the bone building cells in your bones, release osteocalcin, it goes to your brain and has a neuroprotective effect by decreasing inflammation. It goes to your brain and causes the synthesis of neurons in the hippocampus. It goes to the pancreas and helps with insulin insensitivity. It goes to the muscle and helps the muscles scoop up glucose out of the blood, right?

When your osteoblasts, the bone building cells in your bones, release osteocalcin, it goes to your brain and has a neuroprotective effect by decreasing inflammation. It goes to your brain and causes the synthesis of neurons in the hippocampus. It goes to the pancreas and helps with insulin insensitivity. It goes to the muscle and helps the muscles scoop up glucose out of the blood, right?

If you're a man, osteocalcin can travel to the testes and that organ, the lytic cells under stimulation of osteocalcin will produce testosterone. So It's like a miracle and a wonder that we just think of bones as the strong, silent type that hold up our muscle. Because actually bone and the proteins that it produces are master communicators.

If you're a man, osteocalcin can travel to the testes and that organ, the lytic cells under stimulation of osteocalcin will produce testosterone. So It's like a miracle and a wonder that we just think of bones as the strong, silent type that hold up our muscle. Because actually bone and the proteins that it produces are master communicators.

And it makes so much sense because we have bone everywhere in our bodies. Why wouldn't our bodies use it like that?

And it makes so much sense because we have bone everywhere in our bodies. Why wouldn't our bodies use it like that?

Well, and it is a frame, right? What's muscle without bone? Just a heap of metabolic tissue, right? It makes us, gives us our statue, but it's a master communicator. The framework is almost a secondary job, in my opinion.

Well, and it is a frame, right? What's muscle without bone? Just a heap of metabolic tissue, right? It makes us, gives us our statue, but it's a master communicator. The framework is almost a secondary job, in my opinion.

So we've talked about the bone being structural, right? It holds you up. It gives you your stature. We've talked about bone being a master communicator. Another job of the bone is as your body's storehouse. Two really, really important, maybe if we just talk about one of them, calcium. Calcium is a critical mineral in our body.

So we've talked about the bone being structural, right? It holds you up. It gives you your stature. We've talked about bone being a master communicator. Another job of the bone is as your body's storehouse. Two really, really important, maybe if we just talk about one of them, calcium. Calcium is a critical mineral in our body.

We need it for muscle contraction, for pushing molecules across cell membranes. but we've got to store it somewhere. So when we eat food, our intestines pull it out of the food we eat and stores it in our bones. And so our body is always sensing how much calcium, how much phosphorus do we have? What do we need? When our body senses that we need more, It goes to the bone.

We need it for muscle contraction, for pushing molecules across cell membranes. but we've got to store it somewhere. So when we eat food, our intestines pull it out of the food we eat and stores it in our bones. And so our body is always sensing how much calcium, how much phosphorus do we have? What do we need? When our body senses that we need more, It goes to the bone.

It tickles the osteoclast and say, osteoclast, we need some more calcium. The osteoclast breaks down some bone, releases calcium, and it goes into the body for use. And then the body has enough to use. The body does not just keep piling it in because hypercalcemia causes heart arrhythmias. It's bad, right? The body is perfectly in homeostasis, in balance. So when the bone has released enough,

It tickles the osteoclast and say, osteoclast, we need some more calcium. The osteoclast breaks down some bone, releases calcium, and it goes into the body for use. And then the body has enough to use. The body does not just keep piling it in because hypercalcemia causes heart arrhythmias. It's bad, right? The body is perfectly in homeostasis, in balance. So when the bone has released enough,

It sits back and keeps storing it, right? The calcium your body doesn't need, if the bone is full, it's excreted through the kidneys. And this is a really fine balance between building bone, releasing the storehouse of minerals into the bloodstream, or saying, oh, we've got enough. Let's send it out in our urine. The body is such a miracle like that.