Osteoporosis and Bone Loss
After menopause, many women experience bone loss that can eventually lead to osteoporosis. Today, about 1 in 3 women over the age of 50 have osteoporosis, and many more are at risk for developing the disease. Yet, only a relatively small number of women with osteoporosis have been diagnosed or treated.
Why is this? Few women experience symptoms in the early stages of this bone-thinning disease. Also, many women believe that if they simply watch their diet and exercise regularly, they won’t be affected.
Since everyone is different, you should talk to your doctor about your particular situation and what is best for you.
What is Osteoporosis?
It is a disease that causes bones to become more porous, gradually making them weaker and more brittle.
Normal bone is dense and strong. Bone with osteoporosis has thinned out and become more porous, making it more likely to break.
Who is at risk?
Women who have gone through menopause are most at risk. Menopause usually begins when a woman is about 50, though it can occur earlier if a woman has surgery to remove her ovaries.
Other Factors that may contribute to risk include:
- Family history of osteoporosis
- Caucasian or Asian descent
- Thin or small build
- Smoking
- Too much alcohol
- Too little exercise
- Too little calcium (now or as a child)
- Certain medications, such as steroids (commonly used to treat asthma and arthritis) and thyroid hormone (if the dose is too high)
- Early menopause (before age 45)
Remember: Menopause is a key factor contributing to the development of osteoporosis. Even if none of these factors applies to you, if you’re a woman past menopause, you may still have or develop osteoporosis.
What causes osteoporosis?
Our bodies go through a continuous bone-building cycle, where old bone is broken down and new bone is formed. Osteoporosis is caused by an imbalance in this cycle, where too much bone is broken down and incompletely rebuilt.
The single most important factor contributing to this imbalance is menopause. Until their mid-30s, most women gain more bone than they lose. After that, the process usually balances out, so that bone is lost and replaced in equal amount. However, during menopause, hormonal changes - namely, decreasing levels of estrogen- speed up bone loss. When this bone loss becomes severe, a person will develop osteoporosis.
What are the effects?
In the early stages, osteoporosis may have few, if any, physical signs that are noticeable. However, as the disease progresses, broken bones caused by osteoporosis can occur, especially in the spine (or backbone), wrists, and hip bones.
This can lead to pain, loss of height, restricted mobility, or a humped back. In later stages of the disease, patients may break their hips. Approximately half of the patients with hip fracture will be disabled, many of them permanently; and many may require long-term nursing home care.
These physical effects can result in a loss of confidence and strength. They can also mean a loss of freedom, including the ability to lead a health active lifestyle.
But there are ways to combat the effects of osteoporosis. One is early detection. Another is treatment.
Your doctor may be able to tell from certain signs and symptoms if you have osteoporosis. Ask you doctor about bone density testing because osteoporosis can be difficult to detect. It is the most practical way to accurately measure the density of your bones and can be useful in helping your doctor diagnose the disease, especially early on.
Don’t make the mistake of thinking there’s nothing you can do or that taking calcium and exercising regularly are enough to cure osteoporosis. THERE IS something you can do to prevent or treat osteoporosis. Besides watching your diet and exercise, taking bone supplement can help prevent osteoporosis by preventing bone loss and rebuilding thinning bone in post menopausal women at risk
April 25 2008 05:18 pm | Health