Osteoporosis; the silent disease

20th October is the world osteoporosis, around 3 million people in the UK are affected by osteoporosis and 500,000 people receive hospital treatment for fragility fracture every year. In Europe, the disability due to osteoporosis is greater than that caused by cancer (except lung cancer). BUT what is osteoporosis

Osteoporosis means Porous bone. Bone is a living tissue that is constantly being broken down and replaced, we all have some degree of bone loss as we get older but osteoporosis occurs when this balance is disturbed and either body loses too much bone or makes too little new bones. Bones lost their density and become porous and fragile. Osteoporosis develops slowly over several years

osteoporosis affects women and men of all races but white and Asian women, especially older women who are past menopausal are at high risk.

Symptoms

osteoporosis is silent diseases as symptoms appear very late, often only diagnosed when a fall or sudden impact causes a bone to break.

• Chronic back pain
• Loss of height over time
• Stooped or hunched posture
• Limited mobility

what are risks

• GENDER
• ETHNICITY
• FAMILY HISTORY
• AGE
• MENOPAUSE
• LOW BODY WEIGHT
• PREVIOUS FRACTURES
• MEDICAL CONDITION; Early menopause, thyroid disorders
• MEDICATIONS; Glucocorticoids, Antacids

HOW TO PREVENT OSTEOPOROSIS

Osteoporosis is preventable by adopting healthy lifestyle guidelines. Nutrition, physical activity, weight, smoking cessation, avoiding heavy alcohol drinking can improve bone health.

Eat well for bone health

• Well balanced diet consist of all food groups play a critical role in building and maintaining good bone health at every stage of life. There are certain vitamins like vitamin D and K play an important role in preventing osteoporosis. similarly, minerals like calcium, magnesium, phosphorous and copper are important for bone health.
• Building strong bones begin in childhood and are essential to the prevention of osteoporosis. Good nutrition with plenty of calcium rich food like milk and dairy products or other calcium rich sources helps children to achieve their highest possible peak bone mass.

Recent research has found that olive oil, soybeans, blueberries, and food rich in omega 3 fatty acids are like fish oil, and flax seeds may have bone boosting benefits.

EXERCISE

Regular physical activity like aerobic exercises aimed at 30-45 minutes per day or 150 minutes every week helps in preventing osteoporosis.

Studies show that weight bearing exercises such as weight training, walking, hiking, jogging, climbing stairs and playing tennis over a period of time can improve bone density even build a new bone.

WHAT TO AVOID FOR GOOD BONE HEALTH

There are certain foods that should be consumed in moderation like soda, caffeine, saturated fats, salt and alcohol. They have no direct effect on bone health but they impair calcium absorption and reduce bone density.

smoking and bone health;

several studies found smoking as risk factor for osteoporosis and bone fracture.How smoking affects bone health, still unclear that decrease in bone density is due to smokng itself or to other risk factors common among smokers. For example women who smoke also tend to have early menopause than nono smokers and in many cases people who smoke are less physical active, drink more alcohol and poor diet as compared to non smoker.

Osteoporosis is not an invietable part of ageing; it is preventable.So it is vital that all of us, of all ages, start taking care of our bones now , before it is too late. love your bones protect your fracture

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