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Osteoporosis

Osteoporosis is a condition afflicting women and men in which bones become brittle and weak, causing them to break more easily than normal bone.

Often referred to as the silent disease, osteoporosis usually progresses without obvious signs or symptoms until the first fracture occurs. Osteoporosis frequently strikes post-menopausal women, primarily because of the decline in levels of the hormone estrogen.

Osteoporosis can also occur in men as a result of delayed puberty, inadequate calcium intake, smoking, excessive alcohol consumption, or medications, such as steroids.

With osteoporosis, the bones of the hip, wrist and spinal column are vulnerable to fracture. A vertebral compression fracture occurs when one of the bones that makes up the spinal column break. Women and sometimes men who have a hump and very bad stooped posture are suffering from advanced stages of osteoporosis.


Osteoporosis Risk Factors
According to the National Osteoporosis Foundation, some people are more likely to develop osteoporosis than others. Known risk factors are:

• Gender - Women have less bone tissue and lose bone more rapidly than men because of the changes involved in menopause.

• Age - One in two women and one in four men over age 50 will have an osteoporosis-related fracture in her/his remaining lifetime.

• Race - Osteoporosis poses a greater threat to Caucasian and Asian women, although African American and Hispanic women are also at risk.

• Body type - Women who are small-boned or thin are more susceptible to osteoporosis.

• Genetics - If a parent or sibling had osteoporosis, your likelihood for developing the disease is increased.

• Lifestyle - Low calcium intake (even as a child) and a sedentary lifestyle contribute to the development of osteoporosis. In addition, smoking and alcohol abuse are considered risk factors. Vitamin D deficiency can also increase risk.

• Medication - Certain drugs, especially steriods and those drugs used for rheumatoid arthritis and gastrointestinal problems, have side effects that can cause bone damage.

• Prior fracture - Breaking a bone in adulthood, especially after minor trauma, is a hallmark of osteoporosis.