Osteoporosis Risks
Aging, poor diet, hormones and medicines are risk factors
Fractures and broken bones are the result of not paying attention to bone health. Get your exercise and understand the impact of food and medicine.
Start Osteoporosis Prevention Strategy When You are Young
Most people don’t know that they have osteoporosis until they break a hip, spine or wrist which, for older men and women, almost always requires hospitalization and major surgery. As a preventative measure, it’s smart to start early on strategies that lower your risk of osteoporosis. One caveat, however: Osteoporosis is a degenerative disease and you have no control over some risk factors like age and family history.
Bone Growth and Degeneration - Primary Osteoporosis
Bones grow by continuously being built up and broken down, formed and resorbed. Calcium and other minerals do a dance with flexible collagen. After three decades of tissue growth, the build up slows and the break down begins to occur faster. In postmenopausal women, the decrease in estrogen results in rapid depletion of calcium.
Aging is only natural, but you can minimize the risk if you start bone-healthy habits when you are young. Watch what you eat and be sure to include calcium-rich foods like milk, cheese and yogurt. Get plenty of bone-strengthening exercise like running, walking and weight lifting. Whether or not a person develops osteoporosis has a lot to do with this kind of bone-thickening strategy applied early in life. After the age of about 30, bone thinning is a natural process and cannot be stopped completely.
Osteoporosis Results from Hormone Imbalance, Disease, Medicine - Secondary Osteoporosis
Osteoporosis also develops due to hormonal imbalances and certain diseases or medications, which are contributing to a rising number of cases. To manage your risk of secondary osteoporosis pay attention to diet and exercise as usual. Don’t smoke and limit alcohol. Get bone mass measurement test to determine your bone density and fracture risks. Take your medicine, if recommended, but don’t take more than you need.
The makers of medications for osteoporosis have tested the effect of other medications on osteoporosis drugs. The long-term use of glucocorticoids (medications prescribed for a wide range of diseases, including arthritis, asthma, Crohn’s disease, lupus, and other diseases of the lungs, kidneys, and liver) can lead to a loss of bone density and fractures. Bone loss can also result from long-term treatment with certain antiseizure drugs – such as phenytoin (Dilantin) and barbiturates; gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) drugs used to treat endometriosis; excessive use of aluminum-containing antacids; certain cancer treatments; and excessive thyroid hormone.
A recent finding implicates antidepressants as increasing the risk of fractures in patients 50 and older. Researchers said these findings have important public health consequences because about 10% of older patients in the U.S. suffer from depression. However, physicians and their patients should balance the risk of fracture against the benefits of antidepressants.
Expert Information on Osteoporosis
For more information, visit the National Osteoporosis Foundation Website or the National Institute of Health Website.
