Healthy Woman Ob-Gyn’s Dr. Neeti Misra is back with her continuing series on preventive health care.

This time she breaks down osteoporosis with the hope that you’ll be able to stave off the breaking down of your bones from this avoidable disease.

Osteoporosis is a disease of bones that leads to an increased risk of fracture. In osteoporosis the bone mineral density (BMD) is reduced, bone micro-architecture is deteriorating, and the amount and variety of proteins in bone is altered. Osteoporosis is defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a bone mineral density that is 2.5 standard deviations or more below the mean peak bone mass (average of young, healthy adults) as measured by DXA. Osteoporosis is classified as primary type 1, primary type 2, or secondary. The form of osteoporosis most common in women after menopause is referred to as primary type 1 or postmenopausal osteoporosis. Primary type 2 osteoporosis or senile osteoporosis occurs after age 75 and is seen in both females and males at a ratio of 2:1. Finally, secondary osteoporosis may arise at any age and affects men and women equally. This form of osteoporosis results from chronic predisposing medical problems or disease, or prolonged use of medications such as steroids.

After the age of about 30, bone thinning is a natural process and cannot be stopped completely. Whether you develop osteoporosis depends not only on the thickness of your bones early in life but also on your health, diet, and physical activity later in life. The thicker your bones, the less likely the bones are to become thin enough to break. Young women in particular need to be aware of their risk for osteoporosis and take steps early to slow its progress and prevent complications.

A lot of physical activity during the preteen and teen year’s increases bone mass and greatly reduces the risk of osteoporosis in adulthood. If you eat a diet adequate in calcium and vitamin D and exercise regularly early in life and then continue with these healthy habits, you may be able to delay or avoid osteoporosis.

Three factors essential for keeping your bones healthy throughout your life are:

Adequate amounts of calcium

Adequate amounts of vitamin D

Regular exercise

Calcium

The Institute of Medicine (IOM) recommends the following amounts of daily calcium from food and supplements:

Up to 1 year old — 210 to 270 milligrams (mg)

Age 1 to 3 years — 500 mg

Age 4 to 8 years — 800 mg

Age 9 to 18 years — 1,300 mg

Age 19 to 50 years — 1,000 mg

Age 51 and older — 1,200 mg

Dairy products are one, but by no means the only, source of calcium. Almonds, broccoli, spinach, cooked kale, canned salmon with the bones, sardines and soy products, such as tofu, also are rich in calcium. Consider taking calcium supplements. The IOM recommends taking no more than 2,500 mg of calcium daily.

Vitamin D

Adequate amounts of vitamin D intake is just as important to your bone health as getting adequate amounts of calcium. Scientists don’t yet know the optimal daily dose of vitamin D, but it’s safe for anyone older than 1 year to take up to 2,000 international units (IU) a day. Experts generally recommend that adults get between 400 and 1,000 IUs daily. Although many people get adequate amounts of vitamin D from sunlight, this may not be a good source if you live in high latitudes, if you’re housebound, or if you regularly use sunscreen or you avoid the sun entirely because of the risk of skin cancer. Although vitamin D is present in oily fish, such as tuna and sardines, and in egg yolks, you probably don’t eat these on a daily basis. Vitamin D supplements or calcium supplements with added vitamin D are a good alternative.

Exercise

Exercise can help you build strong bones and slow bone loss. Exercise will benefit your bones no matter when you start, but you’ll gain the most benefits if you start exercising regularly when you’re young and continue to exercise throughout your life. Combine strength training exercises with weight-bearing exercises. Strength training helps strengthen muscles and bones in your arms and upper spine, and weight-bearing exercises — such as walking, jogging, running, stair climbing, skipping rope, skiing and impact-producing sports — mainly affect the bones in your legs, hips and lower spine. Swimming, cycling and exercising on machines such as elliptical trainers can provide a good cardiovascular workout, but because such exercises are low impact, they’re not as helpful for improving bone health as weight-bearing exercises are.

Other tips in prevention:

Smoking: Smoking increases bone loss, perhaps by decreasing the amount of estrogen a woman’s body makes and by reducing the absorption of calcium in your intestine – so don’t smoke!

Avoid excessive alcohol. Consuming more than two alcoholic drinks a day may decrease bone formation and reduce your body’s ability to absorb calcium.

Thirty years ago, most people thought osteoporosis and the broken bones it can cause were a part of normal aging. That view has changed. Researchers today know a lot about how you can protect your bones throughout your life. We have learned that getting enough calcium, vitamin D and regular exercise are important for your bones. You’re never too young or too old to improve the health of your bones. Osteoporosis prevention should begin in childhood. But it shouldn’t stop there. Whatever your age, the habits you adopt now can affect your bone health for the rest of your life. Now is the time to take action.

As you may already know, being female puts you at risk of developing osteoporosis and broken bones. Women are more likely to get osteoporosis than men. First of all, women tend to have smaller, thinner bones than men. In addition, estrogen is a hormone in women that protects bones. This is why the chance of developing osteoporosis increases around the time of menopause, when estrogen levels drop sharply. In fact, in the five – seven years following menopause, a woman can lose up to 20% of her bone density.

Here are some facts:

Of the estimated 10 million Americans with osteoporosis, about eight million or 80% are women.

Approximately one in two women over age 50 will break a bone because of osteoporosis.

A woman’s risk of breaking a hip is equal to her combined risk of breast, uterine and ovarian cancer.

But if you already have osteoporosis or are at risk for it, the good news is that there are many things you can do to prevent bone loss and broken bones. Osteoporosis and bone health issues vary for girls and women of different ages and ethnic backgrounds.

To sum it all up:

1. Osteoporosis is common

2. Osteoporosis is serious

Breaking a bone is serious, especially when you’re older. Broken bones due to osteoporosis are most likely to occur in the hip, spine and wrist, but other bones can break too. Broken bones can cause severe pain that may not go away. Some people lose height and become shorter. It can also affect your posture, causing you to become stooped or hunched. This happens when the bones of the spine, called vertebrae, begin to break or collapse. Osteoporosis may even keep you from getting around easily and doing the things you enjoy. This can make you feel isolated and depressed. It can also lead to other health problems. Twenty percent of seniors who break a hip die within one year from problems related to the broken bone itself or surgery to repair it. Many of those who survive need long-term nursing home care.

3. Osteoporosis is costly

In 2005, osteoporosis was responsible for an estimated two million fractures and $19 billion in costs. By 2025, experts predict that osteoporosis will be responsible for approximately three million fractures and $25.3 billion in costs each year.

4. Osteoporosis can sneak up on you

You can’t feel your bones becoming weaker. You could have osteoporosis now or be at risk for it without realizing it. Often, breaking a bone is the first clue that you have osteoporosis. Or, maybe you notice that you are getting shorter or your upper back is curving forward. At this point the disease may be advanced. Fortunately, a bone mineral density test can tell if you have osteoporosis before you have these symptoms. This makes it possible to treat the disease early to prevent broken bones.

Osteoporosis and its effects can effectively be prevented and treated by simple measures. Hope you have found the information useful and will take corrective measures towards healthy bone health!

 

 

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