How to Prevent and Treat Osteoporosis

Osteoporosis is a common health hazard especially for women over 50 even though men run a moderately strong risk of developing the disease as well. There is a plethora of information available today that can cause confusion as to how to prevent or limit the progression of the disease before it causes serious damage to bones. While there are many things that you can do to help prevent osteoporosis, the short answer is that the disease can be prevented by building stronger bones before the age of 30. This is the best prevention against the disease in later life. Although, there are several things you can do later on that will also help resist the onset of the disease or the progression of it if you have already been diagnosed. Since osteoporosis is an often complicated disease, it requires not just one preventive health protocol, but rather several.

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  #1 - You must ingest the recommended amount of vitamin D and calcium. Vitamin D is critical for the proper absorption of calcium in the body to take place. If your body does not have enough vitamin D to process calcium in your body, then your body will slowly remove the necessary vitamin D from your bones in order to synthesize the calcium. Vitamin D is absorbed into the body through two methods: through the sun and through the diet. If you're under 50, you need a daily dosage of 400-800 IU's and if you're over 50, you need to take at least between 800-1,000 IU's daily for proper calcium absorption. The D vitamin is also found in foods such as egg yolks, liver, and saltwater dish.

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  #2 - In order to create the proper body balance for fighting osteoporosis, you should abstain from smoking altogether as well as indulging in excessive alcohol. As in many other health issues, osteoporosis is only exacerbated by these negative health activities and puts users at a higher risk for the disease later in life.

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  #3 - Add a fitness regimen that includes weight bearing exercises at least 3 or 4 days a week for best results. Exercises such as jogging, walking, climbing stairs, and hiking are good, basic activities. Sports such as tennis and racquetball are also good fitness activities. If you are training at a gym, the addition of lighter weight lifting exercises are very helpful for strengthening the hip joints and spine. If you have never included weight lifting in your fitness workout, you may benefit from the expertise of a trainer for a while as you learn the basic uses of weight equipment and how to exercise the correct body areas. A balanced approach to fitness is always best by mixing up both cardio and weight bearing exercises.

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  #4 - Be sure to talk to your healthcare professional about your bone health as well as undergo bone density testing whenever your healthcare provider suggests it. Usually those over 50 should begin to watch for any bone thinning and deterioration. Your doctor can prescribe various types of medication that can also help prevent bone loss if you are at risk.

Be sure to actively combat your risk for osteoporosis not only after the age of 50 but well before, if possible. However, if you find that your are now at risk for developing the disease or are already showing signs of bone thinning, you can still follow these sensible and practical suggestions on combating or slowing further development of osteoporosis.