¿What is Osteoporosis?
Osteoporosis is a disease that weakens your bones.
8 million women in the United States suffer from osteoporosis. One in four women over 65 suffers from this disorder.
“Osteo” means bone and “osteoporosis” means porous bone. When you have osteoporosis, the natural holes in your bones become larger, weakening your bones.
Non-Hispanic white women and Asian women are at the highest risk.
Osteoporosis is a silent disease
Osteoporosis secretly develops in your body. You may discover that you suffer from it after breaking a bone. However, talk to your doctor if you notice that your height has decreased or you start to develop a hunchback.
People with advanced osteoporosis have bones that are so brittle that a slight fall or even a strong cough can break a bone.
What increases your risk of developing osteoporosis?
- Estrogen reduction after menopause
- Age (bone mass naturally decreases over time)
- Slim build, fine bones
- If one of your parents had osteoporosis or a hip fracture
- Nutrition:
- You didn’t get enough calcium and vitamin D during your childhood
- Restrictive diets in adulthood
- Certain medications:
- Corticosteroids
- Antiepileptic drugs
- Some anti-cancer drugs
- Proton pump inhibitors
- SSRI
- Medicines for type 2 diabetes called thiazolidinediones
- Some medical disorders, such as:
- Hormonal disorders
- Gastrointestinal diseases
- Rheumatoid arthritis
- Certain types of cancer
- HIV and AIDS
- Anorexia nervosa
- Not living a physically active life
- smoke
Diagnosis:
Osteoporosis is diagnosed with a bone mineral density test called a dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry test (DEXA).
Treatment options for osteoporosis
There is no cure for osteoporosis, but treatments can slow bone loss or help increase bone density.
Antiresorptive treatment
- Slows down the cells that break down bone
- For people with mild to moderate osteoporosis or for people who are at risk of developing this condition.
In biophosphonates
Alendronate
Risedronate
Zoledronic acid
Denosumab
Raloxifene
Estrogen replacement therapy
Anabolic therapy
- Develop new bone tissue
- For people with severe osteoporosis, with multiple fractures or who cannot take antiresorptive medications
Teriparatide
Abaloparatide
Romosozumab
Vitamin D
Calcium supplements
Lifestyle changes can reduce the risk of osteoporosis or slow bone loss
Nutrition
- Increase consumption of foods rich in calcium and vitamin D
- dairy
- Fortified plant milk
- Green leafy vegetables
- blue fish
- egg yolk
Avoid smoking
Limit alcohol consumption
Exercise
Weight-bearing and resistance exercises can help restore bone density, and balance exercises can help reduce the risk of falls.
- Stress exercises
- quick walks
- Low impact aerobics
- Dance
- Resistance exercises
- Lift weights
- Use resistance bands
- Squats
- Leg raises
- ○Remo
- Balance exercises
- Stand on your tiptoes
- stand on one leg
- Tai chi
Fall prevention
There are steps you can take to prevent falls and reduce the risk of a fracture.
- Safe carpets
- Improve lighting
- Install handrails in the bathroom and on the stairs
- Use non-slip surfaces, e.g. B. Rubber mats
- Remove clutter from the floor
This educational resource was created with support from Radius Health.
