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Taking brittleness out of your bones |
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Some 22.4 million American women are at risk for osteoporosis. Even if you're under 30, you could have it. Here's how to strengthen your weakening bones. Like most people, you may think that only your grandmother has to worry about brittle and weak bones - that it's certainly not something that should concern you. Unfortunately, this just isn't the case. Osteoporosis - a weakening of the bone due to a loss of bone density and internal structure - can occur in women and men at any age. How does it work? Your body continues to build, remove and "remodel" your bones throughout your lifetime. Around the age of 30, your bones are usually as dense and as strong as they will ever be. But from that time on, you gradually start losing bone faster than your body can build it, the reason why older people are more likely than others to develop osteoporosis. Some people, however, have a much higher risk of osteoporosis than others. You may not have developed strong bones as a young person if you: • Are a woman. • Are Caucasian or Asian. • Have a thin build. • Have irregular periods. • Consume a diet low in calcium. • Smoke. • Drink too much alcohol. • Don't exercise. • Have an eating disorder. Some prescription medications, such as steroids and anticonvulsants, can also rob your bones of calcium and cause them to weaken. As a result of any of these factors, you could have low bone mass, which affects 18 million Americans and can lead to osteoporosis at a young age. There are some things you can't change - like your gender and your ethnic background. But you can make lifestyle, diet and medication changes that may keep you from developing osteoporosis at a young age, or maybe ever. |
What can you do? Doctors recommend that all women, regardless of their age, should have a total calcium intake of 1,000 to 1,500 mg per day. You can get this calcium from foods (such as milk, yogurt, cheese, sardines, cooked greens and calcium-fortified orange juice) as well as from calcium supplements with vitamin D (added to help your body absorb the calcium). If you are not outside in sunlight every day, you should get 400 IU of supplemental vitamin D daily, 800 IU if you're over 65. Ask your family doctor if there's a particular type of calcium he or she recommends. You should also do weight-bearing exercise (weight training as well as walking and aerobics) at least 30 minutes a day, at least three times a week to help build stronger bones. Studies have shown that if you don't typically get much exercise, any amount of activity may provide some benefit in terms of strengthening your bones. So get moving! What about hormone replacement? Estrogen replacement therapy can help prevent osteoporosis, but it has risks that may outweigh its benefits for many women. So talk to your doctor about the latest findings. He or she can choose from other medications to slow the development of osteoporosis or even to help you rebuild some bone mass (a more difficult task). They include selective estrogen receptor modulators, calcitonin and bisphosphonates. With today's prevention and treatment options, you can minimize the effects of osteoporosis. You just need to identify the measures best suited to you. The late Cynthia Dayton Klobnak was president of Health-Comm Solutions, LLC, in Kansas City, Mo. |
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