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| Health Info
» Osteoporosis |
OSTEOPOROSIS
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Osteoporosis is a silent
painless disease in which
bones become fragile and
more likely to break. If not
prevented or if left
untreated, osteoporosis can
progress painlessly until a
bone breaks.
Women are four times more
likely than men to develop
the disease and often have a
hard time getting all of the
calcium they need to
maintain strong bones. Three
out of four get less than
the recommended intake of
1200 mgs daily with the
greater population getting
less than half. At this
rate, it's not uncommon for
women to develop
osteoporosis and to suffer
fractures easily. And it's
not only the lack of calcium
in the diet that may be
causing the disease, but
lifestyle choices as well.
Smoking and too much alcohol
both weaken our bones, while
the lack of weight-bearing
exercise hinders the
capability to build and
maintain bone strength.
Primary osteoporosis is a
metabolic bone disease
characterized by low bone
mass and micro-architectural
deterioration of bone
tissue, leading to enhanced
bone fragility and increased
fracture risk. It is also
characterized by an abnormal
mineral/collagen ratio.
Primary osteoporosis
represents bone mass loss
unassociated with any other
chronic illness. It is
related to aging, loss of
the gonadal function in
females and the aging
process in males.
Osteoporosis in men has
recently been recognized as
an important health problem,
as almost 30% of all hip
fractures and up to 20% of
symptomatic vertebral
fractures occur in men.
Osteoporosis is insidious
because you can't see or
feel what's happening. Most
people who have the disease
don't know it, until a bone
breaks. Though the obvious
problems usually occur later
in life, we now know that
the invisible damage begins
earlier - much earlier than
most of us realize. A
woman's estrogen levels can
drop when she over-exercises
or under-eats. One sign of
low estrogen is missed
periods and this can affect
your bone density. Most
young women have normal
cycles and enjoy the natural
protection of estrogen,
which plays a vital role in
bone health. But as our
estrogen production slows,
bone loss begins. Starting
around age 35 we lose up to
one percent of our bone mass
each year. These losses
accelerate rapidly after
menopause. |
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