Are there ways to keep osteoporosis from worsening?

Going easy on salt and stepping up your exercise routine can go a long way in strengthening the bones. Here’s the brittle truth about osteoporosis and how to deal with it

- Leena Mudbidri

Our bones are living tis-sue that make up the body’s skeleton. They provide a supportive framework that is necessary for the body to stay upright. However, as our biological clock ticks away, our bones too tend to become weak and brittle. This is called osteoporosis.

◆ THE CLEAR CULPRITS

Through our growing years, new bones grow faster than the bones we were born with. The body constantly absorbs old bone and replaces it with new bone. We all have a positive bone balance up to 40 years of age. As we age, the new bone creation doesn’t keep up with old bone removal leading to a negative bone balance.

Women have smaller and lighter bones than men. As a result, women develop osteoporosis, especially at menopause, almost four times more often than men. Osteoporosis is more common in post-menopausal women. This occurs when the ovaries decrease production of estrogen, the hormone that protects against bone loss.

Osteoporosis typically occurs in men who are over 65 years of age. This is when there’s a decrease in the production of testosterone, a natural hormone that also helps build bone mass.