Osteoporosis

Living with Osteoporosis

(Video by the Alliance for Aging Research includes interviews with patients with Osteoporosis and features Dr. John D. Kaufman, MD, Past President of the Osteoporosis Interest Group, American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.)

First read the following text and then watch the video for a better understanding of Osteoporosis and how to prevent and treat it.

After the Shock Subsides

However, it is important that you get the support you need and that you are prepared to be vigilant, not just with your diet but also with your environment and in your choice of activities and be prepared to make the changes necessary to make living with the condition manageable

Your doctor will probably prescribe treatment and medication to slow bone loss and manage any pain you might have. But you also need to take responsibility for slowing bone loss yourself and even replacing lost bone if possible. There are lifestyle changes you can make to do this, as well as supplements that help. You must also arrange your environment to stop unnecessary accidents, as it will be more important for you to prevent these than it is for a person without the condition.

Remember that the changes in lifestyle will also protect you against many other age-related conditions. If you go to the smart habits section of this page, the advice there will help you to lead the most disease free life possible.

There are several important changes you should make because of your condition. You should talk these over with your health care specialist who will support you make these changes.

Most Important Changes You Can Make

• Get enough exercise, especially weight-bearing exercise. Start slowly and get the go-ahead of your doctor before embarking on any ambitious exercise program.
  
• Eat a healthy diet that includes fruit, vegetables including leafy greens, whole wheat and other grains, nuts, fish, cheese and other dairy products and skinned white meat. Red meats should be consumed only about twice a month.
  
• Make sure you are getting enough calcium, vitamin D, vitamin K and magnesium.
  
• Stop smoking, cut down on alcohol and caffeine index
  
• Modify your activities if necessary, cutting out all extreme sports and activities where fractures might be common.
  
• Take measures to protect yourself from accidents by modifying your environment.

Dietary Changes

• Choose calcium enriched milk and dairy products. Talk to your local health food shop and check the labels to find out which products have the best calcium rate. Add powdered milk to soups, casseroles and drinks. Buy juices, cereals, grains and bottled water fortified with calcium. Half a cup of diced figs in a natural calcium-rich yoghurt will give you more than half of your daily calcium needs.

• Make sure you get adequate vitamin D so that your body can absorb the calcium to take. Buy products that are enriched with vitamin D, such as margarine. The human body is capable of making vitamin D under the skin when it is exposed to sunlight, so try to get out in sunshine as often as possible, making sure that you protect yourself and avoid sunbathing when the sun is at its highest. However, if you are forced to stay indoors because of illness or disability, consult your doctor or ask your pharmacist about taking a vitamin supplement.

A Few Words about Supplements

But, do you really know if these supplements are delivery the benefits that you need? Many of the supplements available today are ineffective, either because they do not contain enough levels of the ingredient that can help treat or prevent the problem they are supposed to cure or protect against, or because they do not contain what is stated on the label. Even worse, many supplements can have dangerously high levels of contaminants due to inadequate regulations governing their manufacture.

If you take, or want to take supplements and would like to learn more about the disease and which supplements to use to prevent or treat this disease, we would recommend you check out this info by clickinghere. This site contains some interesting information on this subject as well as being a reputable source of dietary supplements.

From the age of 40, through the menopause and into old age, women should consider taking calcium supplements on a regular basis. Not every calcium supplement is able to provide the large quantities of calcium women require after the menopause to keep their bones strong and elastic to prevent factures.

We recommend Bone-Protec as is one of the very few formulas on the market that contains the full spectrum of nutrients needed to build strong bones and ensure the best possible bioavailability. We suggest that you check out this product and other information on anti-aging products by clickinghere. This site contains some interesting information on this subject as well as being a reputable source of dietary supplements. Besides the possibility of ordering Bone-Protec you will find a wide range of anti-aging products which contain no harmful agents.