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What is osteoporosis?Women's health & fitness guideThis is a condition of the bones where the bones become thin and weak, it mainly occurs in the wrist, hips and spine and it is a disease which mainly affects women who have gone through the menopause. However it isn't just limited to women and men and younger people can also be affected too, though in younger people there are generally other factors contributing to the cause as well. Who is affected by the disease? The disease affects millions of people throughout the world, with more of these being women, a huge percentage of fractures that occur do so as a result of osteoporosis. Women are more at risk due to the loss of bone speeding up after they have gone through the menopause, the risk is increased even more in women who have gone through menopause early or who have had their ovaries removed before reaching menopause. How do you know if you have osteoporosis? You should ask yourself the following questions in order to determine if you might be at a higher risk of developing the disease. * Did you reach menopause before the age of 45? * Did you miss your periods for more than 6 months due to an eating disorder? * Have you suffered from fracture due to low trauma in the past? * Has the doctor mentioned thinning of the bones in previous x-rays? * During the last 10 years have you shrunk in height? * Have you taken steroid medication for longer than 6 months? * Does anyone in your family suffer from the disease? * Do you have arthritis, bone disease or hormonal problems? * Do you smoke or drink excessively? What should I do if I think I might be at risk? If two or more of the questions above apply to you then you should talk this over with your doctor, your doctor might suggest that you have blood tests and an examination in order to determine if you have the disease. There are a variety of ways which the disease can be determined; tests include a DEXA scan which involves a very low dosage of x-rays. The x-ray will usually be performed on the hip or wrist and this is to check for the density of your bones, the specialist can then determine if you have the disease or if you might be at risk in the future of developing it. Ways you can prevent the disease? You can help to prevent the disease from occurring in several ways: * Increasing the amount of calcium in your diet. * Maintain bone density by increasing the amount of weight bearing exercise you do. * Stop or at least reduce the amount of cigarettes you smoke or the amount of alcohol you drink. |
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