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How to Treat Osteoporosis
Here are a few things everyone should know about bones and osteoporosis.
Your Skeleton has 206 bones to support and protect your body. It makes
up about 18% of your body weight. On the outside, bones look solid
and rock-like, but they're not. They're living tissue. There is a
smooth, hard, outside layer made of cortical bone, and the
inside, is a strong, light weight, honeycomb-like structure, called
trabecular bone, which contains blood vessels, and bone marrow.
The combination of cortical and trabecular bone enables the skeleton
to be light, strong, flexible and efficient.
By about age 30, our bones have grown to their full adult size and
density. But activity in our bones is far from over.
Our bodies are constantly remodeling our bones to meet the demands
we put on them. Remodeling helps keep bones young and healthy by replacing
old or weakened areas with new, well formed tissue. In a cycle that
takes about 3 to 4 months, destroyer cells called osteoclasts break
down old bone, so that the building cells, the osteoblasts, can replace
it with new bone. Adults have about 10 to 15% of their bone replaced
each year.
However, as we age, osteoclasts often are more efficient at
removing bone than the osteoblasts are at rebuilding bone. This imbalance
over time contributes to bone loss.
Osteoporosis is a disease which, over time, causes bones to become
thinner, more porous and less able to support the body. Bones can
become so thin that they break during normal, every day activity.
Osteoporosis is a major health threat. Millions are at risk, 80% are
women. If you have family history or risk factors, ask your doctor
about a bone density test. You may discover that you have Osteopenia,
a condition of low bone mass, which suggests a person may be at risk
for osteoporosis. Discuss medical options with your doctor.
In Bones with Osteoporosis, the outside hard cortical layer gets thinner,
and the honeycombed, trabecular inside becomes more porous. Bone is
broken down and little or nothing takes its place.
Here
is a cross section of healthy bone & this is bone with osteoporosis.
 Usually, there is no pain, and there are no apparent symptoms. Bones
can become so thin that they break during normal, every day activity.
Most people don't discover they have osteoporosis until a fracture
occurs. Fractures occur most often at the spine, hip, and wrist. People
with advanced Osteoporosis may get multiple compression fractures
of the spine, causing the spine to curve and bend forward.
This
is called Kyphosis.
 But we can prevent and help reverse the effects of osteoporosis by
working out our bones.
Bones are living tissue and scientific evidence suggests that weight
bearing exercise can prevent bone loss and encourage bone growth.
A study showed that tennis players, through repeated practice over
time, developed thicker bones in their racquet arm than their non-racquet
arm.
 Skeletal Fitness by Mirabai Holland® is a comprehensive bone loading
program for the whole body, with special emphasis on the areas at
risk for osteoporotic fracture: the spine, thigh bone at the hip,
and forearm at the wrist.
Remember, it's never too early or too late to start taking care of
your bones. |
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