Ask JJ: Optimal Bone Health

Dear JJ: My doctor warned me I'm in the beginning stages of bone loss and that I need to be taking preventative measures now. My mom and grandma had osteoporosis. What steps can I take right now to reduce its impact? Decreased bone mineral density and altered bone protein are among the early warning signs of osteoporosis, the most common bone disease. While it affects everyone, older women become more susceptible than men to osteoporosis. Researchers estimate 35 percent of postmenopausal Caucasian women have hip, spine, or distal forearm osteoporosis. Regardless of gender, your risk increases with age because bones become more fragile and likelihood of falling increases. Each year, an estimated 1.5 million individuals suffer bone-disease related fracture, which can become a life-altering event that lands you in a nursing home and diminishes your quality of life. The earlier you can take preventative steps, the more you lessen this "silent killer's" impact later in life. Sadly, many people don't focus on strong, resilient bones until a fall or fracture debilitates them. While it might appear stagnant, bone is actually a living, dynamic tissue your body constantly replaces. Two types of cells make that happen. Osteoblasts help form bone matrix, while osteoclasts break down that matrix. Like with most things in life, balance becomes key: Ideally osteoblasts and osteoclasts work in harmony. (A third type of cell, osteocytes, supervise this process.) Osteoporosis occur...
Source: Healthy Living - The Huffington Post - Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news