Osteoporosis literally means "porous bone." The disease causes bones to weaken, leaving an osteoporosis sufferer highly susceptible to fractures. It affects 28 million Americans and is believed to be a contributory factor in 1.5 million bone fractures a year.
Osteoporosis is particularly severe in the elderly. Half of women and one in five men over the age of 65 who have osteoporosis suffer fractures. Unfortunately, it is not just falls that cause fractures in osteoporosis. Even simple tasks that you perform at home could seriously injure your spine due to the weakness caused by the disease.
Hip fractures, which can be extremely debilitating, are very common amongst those who have osteoporosis. They permanently affect a person's ability to walk, and they're also expensive to treat, with the average health care cost around $35,000 per patient.
Although no specific medical factors have been found to cause osteoporosis, doctors have discovered a number of things that go hand in hand with the disease.
We all lose bone with age, and our body starts to replace bone more slowly after the age of 35. The combination of these two factors leads to an overall decrease in bone mass. So the older you are, the higher your risk of getting osteoporosis.
Osteoporosis can also be hereditary. If your family has a long history of fractures, if you have a slim build, or if you're Asian or Caucasian, osteoporosis is more likely to strike.
Smoking and alcohol abuse, coupled with a poor diet that lacks nutrition (particularly a lack of calcium) can cause osteoporosis. Certain medications such as steroids, have been linked with osteoporosis.
