Osteoporosis disease - More people at risk of fracture from thinning bones

Author

More people at risk of fracture from thinning bones

Roman Bystrianyk

2004-10-14, 7:13 pm

http://www.healthsentinel.com/news....ist_item&id=322

"More people at risk of fracture from thinning bones", USA Today,
October 14, 2004,
Link: http://www.usatoday.com/news/health...-14-bones_x.htm

Half of all older Americans will have bone-thinning osteoporosis or be
at high risk of getting it by 2020 — unless they start strengthening
their bones now with a boost of calcium, vitamin D and exercise, the
surgeon general warned Thursday.

Weak bones, from osteoporosis and a variety of other bone diseases,
aren't a natural part of aging, Surgeon General Richard Carmona
stressed, though the risk of osteoporosis does increase over age 50.
But often doctors are just as guilty as their patients in overlooking
the risk — even forgetting to check bone density when middle-age or
older patients suffer fractures.

"Osteoporosis isn't just your grandmother's disease," Carmona said in
releasing the first surgeon general's report on bone health. "You are
never too old or too young to improve your bone health."

Osteoporosis affects an estimated 10 million Americans, and each year,
about 1.5 million of them suffer a fracture as a result. Another 34
million Americans have less severe bone thinning that increases their
risk.

Women are at particular risk, especially white women. But osteoporosis
does affect men, too, and people of all races — a risk that increases
over age 50 as it becomes harder for new bone to form.

Osteoporosis is an under-diagnosed disease, because many people don't
know their bones are thinning until one breaks, the report notes.

For older people especially, fractures are much more than nuisance:
Nearly one in five hip-fracture patients winds up in a nursing home,
and their risk of death during the next few months is up to four times
greater than that of similarly aged people with healthy bones.

Yet the report found that in one study, only one-eighth to a quarter
of patients who had a hip fracture were given a bone-density test to
check the severity of their bone-thinning. Also, fewer than a quarter
were given calcium and vitamin D supplements to help build up their
bones, and fewer than a tenth were prescribed effective osteoporosis
drugs.

The new report makes a series of recommendations:

• Strong bones begin in childhood with proper calcium and vitamin D.
Recommended amounts vary by age, but about three 8-ounce glasses of
low-fat milk a day — combined with calcium from the rest of a normal
diet — is enough to meet most people's needs. Calcium is present in
other foods, too, such as broccoli and fortified orange juice; vitamin
D also is added to certain foods and can be absorbed from sunshine.
But many people also require supplements to get enough.

• Adults need at least 30 minutes of physical activity a day, and
children 60 minutes, including weight-bearing activities that improve
bone strength and balance.

• Older people should minimize the risk of falls by moving flimsy rugs
or other items they might trip over, improving lighting and getting
vision checks.

• All women over 65 and any man or women who suffers even a minor
fracture after age 50 needs a bone-density test.

• Doctors should look for warning signs of bone thinning, including
people under 50 who have had multiple fractures. Also at risk are
those who take medications, such as steroid-containing drugs, or who
have hormonal, kidney or other diseases that over time can thin bones.

magnulus

2004-10-16, 2:08 am

Recommendations to drink more milk are frequent from the government, but
it ignores the fact that increasing numbers of the US population are lactose
intolerant (many blacks, many hispanics, some people of southern European
ancestory, almost all Asians, some elderly people- including elderly
whites). High intake of meat, especially read meat, encourages
malabsorbtion of calcium. Too much caffeine also causes calcium to be
excreted.

Yes, increasing calcium intake is important, but the way the government
recommends it is culturally/racially insensitive. Drinking cow milk is not
the only option, and in fact the intestinal distress might well lead to
malnutrition or dehydration of its own. People should eat limited amounts
of low fat cheese and yogurt (which will have less lactose), more
vegetables, and if they are lactose intolerant, a fortified non-dairy milk
like soy milk or rice milk.

Gymmy Bob

2004-10-16, 2:08 am

Milk is just plain poison for humans. The lactose intolerance is the least
of the problem and only invented as a problem by the dairy marketting boards
as a ploy to resolve the drop in consumption since 1980.

"magnulus" <magnulus@bellsouth.net> wrote in message
news:vf0cd.7463$pi7.4632@bignews4.bellsouth.net...
> Recommendations to drink more milk are frequent from the government, but
> it ignores the fact that increasing numbers of the US population are
lactose
> intolerant (many blacks, many hispanics, some people of southern European
> ancestory, almost all Asians, some elderly people- including elderly
> whites). High intake of meat, especially read meat, encourages
> malabsorbtion of calcium. Too much caffeine also causes calcium to be
> excreted.
>
> Yes, increasing calcium intake is important, but the way the government
> recommends it is culturally/racially insensitive. Drinking cow milk is
not
> the only option, and in fact the intestinal distress might well lead to
> malnutrition or dehydration of its own. People should eat limited amounts
> of low fat cheese and yogurt (which will have less lactose), more
> vegetables, and if they are lactose intolerant, a fortified non-dairy milk
> like soy milk or rice milk.
>
>

Gymmy Bob

2004-10-20, 11:12 am

magnulus

2004-10-20, 11:12 am