Osteoporosis
Introduction
The typical human body is composed of 206 bones, 126 of them being part of the appendicular skeleton and 80 of them part of the axial skeleton. Bone is living growing tissue that is made of collagen (NIH, 2015). Collagen is a protein that helps bones provide calcium, which makes them stronger and hardens the body’s framework (NIH, 2015). The human body requires bone tissue to function properly; it supports softer tissue, protects the body (especially the internal organs, assists with movements of the skeletal muscle tissues that are attached to the bones (allows bones to move), stores minerals such as calcium and phosphorus, produces blood into red bone marrow of the larger bones, and it stores chemical energy. As …show more content…
It is a disease that thins and weakens the bones, making them a lot more fragile and easier to break (Medline, n.a.). Bones become a lot more fragile, especially the hip, spine and wrist bones. However, spongy bone of spine and neck of femur are the most susceptible and vertebral and hip fractures and the most common (Badr, 2016). This disease is known as a “silent disease” because a person might not be aware of it until a bone has been broken, bruised or sprained. There are plenty of common factors as to why people develop osteoporosis. Some of these factors include aging, family history of osteoporosis, certain drugs (medications), low bone density, and low calcium intake at a young age (Medline, n.a.). Osteoporosis is one of the main health concerns especially amongst the elderly. Women are the most affected by this disease especially post menopause. It is very important to understand the negative factors of osteoporosis due to the fact that it can be prevented at a younger age. It is very likely for people to be able to prevent osteoporosis, however, it is also very likely to treat it. These prevention methods come from early age prevention systems such as good physical activity and plenty of calcium intakes. Good, healthy lifestyle habits also play a major role in osteoporosis prevention (Clark, 2014). Becoming more active in physical …show more content…
Most often aged, postmenopausal women are the most affected (Badr, 2016). Thirty percent of women aged 60-70 years are affected and seventy percent by age 80 (Badr, 2016). Men are less prone to develop osteoporosis due to the protection of their levels of testosterone. Also, it is proven that the disease is less prevalent in men than in women due to their bone mineral density (BMD) (Melton, 2000). Measuring a patients BMD can lower their risk of developing the illness (Blake, 2007). The average of the world’s population has been increasing. According to the article Public health impact of osteoporosis, the population of 65 and older adults will increase from about 506 million to 1.3 billion (2008-2040) (Cauley, 2013). This accounts for 14% of the population, which leads to a much greater elderly population (80 years and older). Having an expanded population of older people in the United States, will lead to more cases of osteoporosis and the number of fractures will increase. Women are responsible for 71% of those fractures which makes it much less of a probability for men to develop osteoporosis (Cauley, 2013). If fractures continue to happen and the population grows, then the United States will be associated with a cost of $25.3 billion in fractures (Cauley,
Introduction
The typical human body is composed of 206 bones, 126 of them being part of the appendicular skeleton and 80 of them part of the axial skeleton. Bone is living growing tissue that is made of collagen (NIH, 2015). Collagen is a protein that helps bones provide calcium, which makes them stronger and hardens the body’s framework (NIH, 2015). The human body requires bone tissue to function properly; it supports softer tissue, protects the body (especially the internal organs, assists with movements of the skeletal muscle tissues that are attached to the bones (allows bones to move), stores minerals such as calcium and phosphorus, produces blood into red bone marrow of the larger bones, and it stores chemical energy. As …show more content…
It is a disease that thins and weakens the bones, making them a lot more fragile and easier to break (Medline, n.a.). Bones become a lot more fragile, especially the hip, spine and wrist bones. However, spongy bone of spine and neck of femur are the most susceptible and vertebral and hip fractures and the most common (Badr, 2016). This disease is known as a “silent disease” because a person might not be aware of it until a bone has been broken, bruised or sprained. There are plenty of common factors as to why people develop osteoporosis. Some of these factors include aging, family history of osteoporosis, certain drugs (medications), low bone density, and low calcium intake at a young age (Medline, n.a.). Osteoporosis is one of the main health concerns especially amongst the elderly. Women are the most affected by this disease especially post menopause. It is very important to understand the negative factors of osteoporosis due to the fact that it can be prevented at a younger age. It is very likely for people to be able to prevent osteoporosis, however, it is also very likely to treat it. These prevention methods come from early age prevention systems such as good physical activity and plenty of calcium intakes. Good, healthy lifestyle habits also play a major role in osteoporosis prevention (Clark, 2014). Becoming more active in physical …show more content…
Most often aged, postmenopausal women are the most affected (Badr, 2016). Thirty percent of women aged 60-70 years are affected and seventy percent by age 80 (Badr, 2016). Men are less prone to develop osteoporosis due to the protection of their levels of testosterone. Also, it is proven that the disease is less prevalent in men than in women due to their bone mineral density (BMD) (Melton, 2000). Measuring a patients BMD can lower their risk of developing the illness (Blake, 2007). The average of the world’s population has been increasing. According to the article Public health impact of osteoporosis, the population of 65 and older adults will increase from about 506 million to 1.3 billion (2008-2040) (Cauley, 2013). This accounts for 14% of the population, which leads to a much greater elderly population (80 years and older). Having an expanded population of older people in the United States, will lead to more cases of osteoporosis and the number of fractures will increase. Women are responsible for 71% of those fractures which makes it much less of a probability for men to develop osteoporosis (Cauley, 2013). If fractures continue to happen and the population grows, then the United States will be associated with a cost of $25.3 billion in fractures (Cauley,