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Bone Health
Bone health is affected by multiple factors. Parathyroid (PTH) hormone and vitamin D play very important role in bone metabolism. PTH hormone is secreted by parathyroid glands.
Osteoporosis silently weakens your bones, which can make you more likely to experience a bone fracture (broken bone). You can prevent bone density loss with treatments and exercise. Ask your provider about a bone density test if you’re over 65 or have a family history of osteoporosis.
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Osteoporosis is a disease that weakens your bones. It makes your bones thinner and less dense than they should be. People with osteoporosis are much more likely to experience broken bones (bone fractures).
Your bones are usually dense and strong enough to support your weight and absorb most kinds of impacts. As you age, your bones naturally lose some of their density and their ability to regrow (remodel) themselves. If you have osteoporosis your bones are much more fragile than they should be, and are much weaker.
Most people don’t know they have osteoporosis until it causes them to break a bone. Osteoporosis can make any of your bones more likely to break, but the most commonly affected bones include your:
- Hips (hip fractures).
- Wrists.
- Spine (fractured vertebrae).
The sooner a healthcare provider diagnoses osteoporosis, the less likely you are to experience bone fractures. Ask a healthcare provider about checking your bone density, especially if you’re over 65, have had a bone fracture after age 50, or someone in your biological family has osteoporosis.
What are osteoporosis symptoms?
Osteoporosis doesn’t have symptoms the way lots of other health conditions do. That’s why healthcare providers sometimes call it a silent disease.
You won’t feel or notice anything that signals you might have osteoporosis. You won’t have a headache, fever or stomachache that lets you know something in your body is wrong.
The most common “symptom” is suddenly breaking a bone, especially after a small fall or minor accident that usually wouldn’t hurt you.
Even though osteoporosis doesn’t directly cause symptoms, you might notice a few changes in your body that can mean your bones are losing strength or density. These warning signs of osteoporosis can include:
- Losing an inch or more of your height.
- Changes in your natural posture (stooping or bending forward more).
- Shortness of breath (if disks in your spine are compressed enough to reduce your lung capacity).
- Lower back pain (pain in your lumbar spine).
It might be hard to notice changes in your own physical appearance. A loved one may be more likely to see changes in your body (especially your height or posture). People sometimes joke about older adults “shrinking” as they age, but this can be a sign that you should visit a healthcare provider for a bone density test.