A Marin Health and Wellness Professional Reports! Osteoporosis is a disease that affects over ten million Americans and threatens to affect tens of millions more. Affecting mostly seniors, many sufferers don’t even realize that they have osteoporosis until they’ve fractured a bone or notice that their posture starts to change. While there is little that can be done once the worst ravages of osteoporosis have set in, there are a few ways to help prevent it and even slow it, if caught early. In this article, we’ll learn more about osteoporosis and some ways that this disease can be prevented.
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What is Osteoporosis?
Osteoporosis literally means “porous bone.” It is characterized by structural deterioration of bone tissue and low bone mass. This leads to the bones being very fragile and easily fractured, most frequently affecting the hip, wrist and bones of the spine. Of the estimated ten million Americans that currently are suffering from osteoporosis, it is thought that eight million of them are women, while as many as 44 million Americans are thought to be at risk for developing the disease. While osteoporosis can also be developed in males, women are by far more likely to develop the disease. This is because, like all tissues in the body, the cells of the bones are continually being replenished and an imbalance occurs when the old bone cells are absorbed by the body faster than the body can create new ones, and this can occur at a faster rate during or after menopause.
Prevention through Diet
Calcium is the best resource for replenishing the bone cells, and this is why we place such a high importance on dairy products. By the time a woman reaches twenty years old, she has already achieved 98 percent of her total body mass, so it is for this reason that we try to encourage our children to consume dairy in the form of milk, cheese and yogurt. Having a strong skeletal system through adolescence is the best prevention against osteoporosis in the future. But just because most of the skeletal mass is formed by the age of twenty doesn’t mean that adults shouldn’t reap the benefits of calcium, too. Your Marin health and wellness professional stresses that diet or calcium supplements are just one half of osteoporosis prevention.
Prevention through Exercise
The other half, of course, is exercise. Of course we know that exercise is good for our muscles, heart and overall health, but did you know that exercise is good for the bones, too? Your Marin health and wellness professional suggests that if you’ve always lead an active lifestyle, continuing into the future is the best way to prevent the onset of the disease. If you haven’t been active, or think you’re too old to start, this couldn’t be further from the truth and now is the best time to start! We don’t often think of our bones as being living tissue, but they are and they respond to exercise just like muscles do – they become bigger and stronger. Whatever kind of exercise you choose, choosing to be active is a great way to not only help prevent osteoporosis, but help slow its affects as well.
A Marin health and wellness professional can help show you different exercise routines to make sure there is variety to your program. Variety will help make sure that you do not get bored and stay motivated to continue. It will also help work different parts of your body so that you become stronger and help prevent osteoporosis. If you want to prevent osteoporosis and become strong and healthy, consider hiring a Marin health and wellness professional today!
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