Osteoporosis, a condition causing weakened bones presents many risk factors that cannot be altered. Thin-framed Caucasian women with a family history of osteoporosis have the greatest risk. However, having risk factors does not mean that getting the disease is inevitable. This is especially true in the case of osteoporosis, because there are many other risk factors that can be modified to help prevent this disease and/or control how severe it becomes.
Diet
Modifications to diet are essential to help prevent osteoporosis. Calcium and vitamin D requirements change, depending on your stage of life. Calcium keeps the bones strong and vitamin D helps the bones absorb calcium. Not getting enough calcium throughout life is a major risk factor for osteoporosis, states the Mayo Clinic.
A well rounded diet should include dairy foods or soy substitutes, almonds, broccoli, spinach, cooked kale, tuna, egg yolks, canned salmon with the bones and sardines. The goal is to eat a variety of foods and a physician can recommend supplements if the diet is inadequate.
Avoiding restrictive diets that lead to being underweight and seeking medical help for eating disorders is also essential to prevent this disease. While osteoporosis is more common in older individuals, it can be diagnosed in children and teens with poor diets.
Stop Smoking
Smoking is not just bad for the heart and lungs, tobacco also robs the bones of strength, claims the National Institutes of Health. The more cigarettes you smoked, the higher the risk of fractures in old age.
Smoking becomes even more of a concern with other risk factors present such as being thin, excessive alcohol intake, poor diet and lack of exercise. In addition, smokers tend to produce less estrogen and reach menopause earlier, which both raise the risk of developing osteoporosis. The good news is that within a few years of quitting smoking, bone strength can improve with treatment.
Exercise
The University of Arizona recommends adopting a regular exercise routine, because those who exercise often appear to have a lower risk of developing osteoporosis. Weight bearing exercises build bone. Walking, dancing and tai chi strengthens the bones in the legs. Push ups on the floor or against the wall and yoga postures that place weight on the arms and hands can strengthen the bones in the arms and wrists.
The goal is to exercise for 30 minutes on most days of the week. While activities such as swimming and biking are good for the heart and lungs, they are not weight bearing. The best solution is to do a variety of activities that each challenge the body in a different way.
Bone Density Tests
While not an actual modification, an important step in preventing osteoporosis is to have regular bone density tests. These tests, which are painless and similar to an X-ray, can catch bone loss or osteopenia in the early stages. Osteopenia is diagnosed when the bones are just starting to lose strength, but osteoporosis has not yet occurred.
Testing is essential because weak bones do not always cause symptoms, warns the National Osteoporosis Foundation. By the time a loss in height, a hunched upper back, fractures or back pain develops, the disease is already in the advanced stages. If caught at the osteopenia stage, steps can be taken to prevent osteoporosis from developing.
