the hormones of stress wreak havoc with the trafficking of calcium, biasing bone toward disintegration, rather than growth. The main culprits are glucocorticoids. They inhibit the growth of new bone by disrupting the division of the bone-precursor cells in the ends of bones. Furthermore, they reduce the calcium supply to bone. Glucocorticoids block the uptake of dietary calcium in the intestines (uptake normally stimulated by vitamin D), increase the excretion of calcium by the kidney, and accelerate the resorption of bone.
