Great Info Tips

Today I want to chat about this preventable disease. Yes, it is preventable, but YOU have to take charge and do something about it now. Anyone can have osteoporosis, not just elderly women. Remember seeing your grandmother getting rather hunch backed? That was osteoporosis. Women tend to lose about 10% of their bone mass during the first five years after menopause. You may not even be aware you have this disease.

Bone continuously renews itself, but the cells that break down bone work faster than cells that would build the bone if osteoporosis is evident. How do you determine if you are at risk? If your family has a history of low-impact fractures, being too thin, using steroid therapy for over 3 months, smoking, low calcium intake, low amount of physical activity, or frequent alcohol consumption of over 2 drinks per day. Take to your doctor about getting a bone density scan. If there is a concern he can suggest the right kind of treatment for you.

My grandmother wasn’t hunched over, nor is my mother. However, I have been told I have the start of osteoporosis due to a certain spot on my spine. It hasn’t changed in years, but it’s something I think about. I don’t want to become a hunched over old woman, shrinking in height over the years. Time to take action and get on a program. Be sure to check with your doctor. I know I say that often, but your doctor is the one who can order the tests and help you. If you are not comfortable with the doctor you have been seeing, perhaps a change of doctors is due.