Preventing osteoporosis is more successful than treating the condition, according to The Merck Manual of Medical Information. The encyclopedia reports that exercise and calcium consumption are the two primary ways you can reduce your risk of osteoporosis. Exercise is less beneficial after you have osteoporosis, but it should be part of your daily routine, according to the Mayo Clinic. Knowing the best exercises to reduce osteoporosis is important.
Significance
Osteoporosis is a condition that affects about 10 million Americans, mostly women, the Mayo Clinic reports. When you have osteoporosis, your bones become thin and brittle and you are susceptible to bone fractures. About 250,000 Americans each year suffer osteoporosis-related hip fractures, according to the textbook "Essentials for Health and Wellness." Postmenopausal osteoporosis and senile osteoporosis are the two primary kinds of osteoporosis. A lack of estrogen, the female hormone, causes postmenopausal osteoporosis; a lack of calcium causes senile osteoporosis.
Diagnosis
Bone-density tests that take about 10 minutes and are safe and painless can diagnose osteoporosis, according to The Merck Manual. "Essentials" reports that you are susceptible to vertebral fractures if your bone mass is 300g of calcium and hip fractures if your bone mass is 250g of calcium. Bone mass peaks at age 30 when the average man's bone mass is 900g of calcium and the average woman's is 750g. At 60, the average man's and woman's bone mass is 650g and 450g of calcium, respectively.
Prevention
You can control how much your bone density declines. Building up "as much bone mass as possible while young through calcium consumption and exercise" are the best steps for preventing osteoporosis, write "Essentials" co-authors Gordon Edlin and Eric Golanty. Strength exercises, including weightlifting and resistance exercises such as push-ups and pull-ups, are the best exercises for improving or maintaining your bone density. Other weight-bearing exercises such as running and walking also help.
Treatment
Exercise can reduce the severity of your osteoporosis by slowing your bone density's decline. However, lifting heavy weights can be harmful once your bone mass declines below 300g of calcium, according to The Merck Manual. By age 80, the average man's and woman's bone mass is 450g and 250g of calcium, respectively. The best exercises for people with risky bone-density levels are low-impact, weight-bearing exercises such as walking and lifting light weights, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Warnings
Exercise, calcium and estrogen replacement were the primary ways to prevent and reduce osteoporosis until a 2002 "landmark" study showed that long-term estrogen use "increased the risk of breast cancer, heart attacks, strokes and blood clots," reports the Mayo Clinic. The Mayo Clinic also urges people with osteoporosis to avoid smoking and drinking a lot of alcohol and recommends bone-density tests every year or two after your treatment for osteoporosis begins.
References
- Mayo Clinic: Osteoporosis Treatment - Without Estrogen
- Mayo Clinic: Bone Density Measurement Can Determine Effectiveness of Osteoporosis Medication
- The Merck Manual of Medical Information; 2003
- "An Invitation to Health"; Dianne Hales; 2010
- "Essentials for Health and Wellness"; Gordon Edlin and Eric Golanty; 2004
