What is osteoporosis?

Osteoporosis means the bones are weak and thin enough that they can break easily. The older you are, the more likely you are to get osteoporosis. But with plenty of calcium, vitamin D, and exercise, you can help prevent osteoporosis.

The preteen and teen years are a key time for bone building. With the help of calcium, vitamin D, and exercise in those early years and beyond, the bones reach their peak density and strength by age 30. After age 30, your bones naturally start to thin and weaken.

The stronger your bones are at around age 30, the lower your risk for osteoporosis. But no matter what your age and risk are, your bones still need calcium, vitamin D, and exercise to stay strong. Also avoid smoking, and limit alcohol. Smoking and heavy alcohol use can make your bones thinner.

Talk to your doctor about any special risks you might have, such as having a close relative with osteoporosis or taking a medicine that can weaken bones. Your doctor can tell you the best ways to protect your bones from thinning.

After the age of 30, you begin to lose a small amount of bone each year. This makes your bones thinner over time and can eventually lead to osteoporosis. When bones thin, they lose strength and break more easily. Osteoporosis often doesn't have a noticeable effect on people until they are 60 or older.

In the early stages of osteoporosis, you probably won't have symptoms. As the disease progresses, you may have symptoms related to weakened bones, such as:

• Broken bones (fractures) that might occur with a minor injury, especially in the hip, spine, and wrist.
• Back pain.
• Loss of height and stooped posture.
• A curved upper back (dowager's hump). You might notice that you aren't as tall as you used to be.
• Compression fractures in the spine that may cause severe back pain. But sometimes these fractures cause only minor symptoms or no symptoms at all.

Treatment for osteoporosis focuses on reducing bone loss, building bone strength, and preventing broken bones. Treatment may include:

• Taking medicines that slow the rate of bone thinning and help build bone density.
• Getting enough calcium and vitamin D to build strong, healthy bones.
• Having healthy habits, such as getting plenty of weight-bearing exercise, eating healthy foods, and not smoking. This can help slow osteoporosis.

Making even small changes in how you eat and exercise, along with taking medicine, can help prevent a broken bone.

It's also important to protect yourself from falling. For example, you can reduce your risk of breaking a bone by making your home safer.

There are things you can do to help prevent osteoporosis. Certain lifestyle changes will help slow the loss of bone density.

• Eat food that has plenty of calcium and vitamin D. Yogurt, cheese, milk, and dark green vegetables are high in calcium. Eggs, fatty fish, cereal, and fortified milk are high in vitamin D.
• Ask your doctor if you need to take a calcium plus vitamin D supplement. You may be able to get enough calcium and vitamin D through your diet.
• Get regular exercise.
  • Do 30 minutes of weight-bearing exercise on most days of the week. Walking, jogging, stair climbing, and dancing are good choices.
  • Do resistance exercises with weights or elastic bands 2 or 3 days a week.
• Limit alcohol to 2 drinks a day for men and 1 drink a day for women. Too much alcohol can cause health problems.
• Do not smoke. Smoking can make bones thin faster. If you need help quitting, talk to your doctor about stop-smoking programs and medicines. These can increase your chances of quitting for good.

Prescription medicines are available for treating low bone density. But these are more often used to treat osteoporosis.

To diagnose osteoporosis, your doctor will ask about your symptoms and do a physical exam. You may also have a test that measures your bone strength (bone density test) and your risk for a broken bone.

You can do a lot to slow bone loss and prevent broken bones.

• Get enough calcium and vitamin D. Vitamin D helps your body absorb calcium. Calcium is found in many foods, including dairy products like milk and yogurt. Ask your doctor if you need to take a supplement that contains calcium plus vitamin D.
• Get regular bone-building exercise. This includes:
  • Weight-bearing exercises like walking, jogging, stair climbing, and dancing.
  • Resistance exercises with weights or elastic bands.
• Don’t smoke. If you need help quitting, talk to your doctor about stop-smoking programs and medicines.
• Limit alcohol to 2 drinks a day for men and 1 drink a day for women.
• Prevent falls.
  • Use a cane or walker, if you need it.
  • Install handrails on stairways, around your shower or tub area, and near the toilet.
  • Remove throw rugs and other objects that are in the way.

A number of things put you at risk for osteoporosis. These include being older, being a woman who has gone through menopause, and having a slender body frame. Smoking and not getting enough calcium and vitamin D also put you at risk. Some men can be at risk because of low testosterone.

Doing weight-bearing exercises throughout your life can help you prevent osteoporosis. They help you build strong bones as a young person. And they help you maintain your bone thickness (density) as an adult. But if you stop exercising, your bones will start to thin.

Some weight-bearing exercise is aerobic, such as walking, jogging, climbing, and dancing. Some is resistance, such as lifting weights.

Starting these exercises at any age will help prevent bone loss. It's best to do aerobic exercises for at least 2½ hours a week. For example, do them 30 minutes a day, at least 5 days a week. Experts recommend that you do resistance exercises at least 2 days a week.

Exercises that aren't weight-bearing, such as swimming, are good for your general health. But they don't work your muscles and bones against gravity, so they don't stimulate new bone growth.

Osteoporosis is caused by a lack of bone strength or bone density.

As a natural part of aging, bone tissue breaks down. It is absorbed faster than new bone is made, and bones become thinner. You are more likely to have osteoporosis if you didn't reach your ideal bone density during your childhood and teen years.

Osteoporosis is much more common in women than in men. In women, bone loss increases around menopause. That's when ovaries decrease production of estrogen, a hormone that protects against bone loss. So the older a woman gets, the more likely she is to have osteoporosis.

Osteoporosis is a disease that affects your bones. Your bones become thin and brittle with lots of holes inside them like a sponge. The bones can easily break, leading to broken bones (fractures) in the hip, spine, and wrist.