Let's face it, you can't change your age, but you can change how you age. If you want to age with grace, beauty and vitality -- and who doesn't? -- healthy food and exercise are paramount.

If you are in that group of women closer to 50 than 30 (or planning to be!), here are two key health issues that you can control to make the second half of your life as great as the first.

• Calcium needs go up. Estrogen is essential to keeping calcium in bones. As you approach menopause, estrogen levels begin to fall. Even if you take calcium during early menopause, it seems that loss of bone mass is inevitable, indicating that estrogen is more significant than calcium in determining bone mass. Fortunately, though, after the first five years of menopause, there may be some benefit to taking calcium supplements.

  To prepare for this inevitable bone loss you must maximize your bone density as much as possible before entering your menopausal years. Studies show that those of us starting menopause with peak bone mass can delay our risk for bone fractures by as much as a decade.

• Try to get at least 1,200 mg of calcium a day, the equivalent of four glasses of milk
  
• Eat plenty of low-fat dairy products, tofu and leafy green vegetables, and take a supplement with meals if you think you're not getting enough.
• Studies show that exercise not only prevents bone loss, it helps to increase bone mass. One hour of exercise three times a week, or 20 minutes daily, of weight-bearing exercise is recommended.
• In addition to exercise and calcium consumption, avoid things that leach calcium from your body. The worst offenders are smoking, excess alcohol consumption, three or more cups of caffeinated coffee, excess phosphorous consumption (in diet sodas and some processed foods), too much salt and too much protein.