Osteoporosis is a progressive disease that weakens your bones. It can place people at a higher risk for fractures, which often lead to a cascade of negative health effects.
Understanding how to prevent, diagnose, and treat osteoporosis is an important part of healthy aging. Bone health has a direct connection to overall health and is an issue that is often overlooked in health care.
The interior of healthy bones looks a lot like a sponge, filled with tiny openings surrounded by an outer shell of dense bone tissue. In people with osteoporosis, those openings or “holes” grow larger, decreasing the structural support of your bones and increasing the risk of fracture.
Your bones not only support your entire body, but they also work to store calcium. When your body needs more calcium, bone tissue breaks down to release it and then rebuilds new bone tissue, a process called bone remodeling.
When you’re young, your body builds more bone than it loses, but after the age of 30, you begin to lose more bone tissue than you create. This is why osteoporosis is most common in older adults.
Osteoporosis often presents no clear symptoms. Sufferers might notice changes in posture, loss of height, or increased fractures.
Diagnostic tools include special X-ray imaging called dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA or DXA) scanning. In the later stages of osteoporosis, regular X-rays can show signs of bone loss.
Dr. Raja focuses on preventing osteoporosis and educates patients on how to support optimal bone health at all phases of life.
There are several ways to treat osteoporosis. Increasing weight-bearing exercise and adding resistance and balance exercises to your fitness routine is a great start.
Medications can help treat osteoporosis. Supplemental hormone therapy can help both men and women, and there are also non-hormonal options that mimic the effects of estrogen in bone tissue.
Other medications work by preventing your body from re-absorbing bone tissue or boosting new bone formation. Dr. Raja can discuss whether medications are the right option for your specific bone health needs.
Dietary supplements can also be a good way to support bone health, but the preferred approach is to find ways to get the nutrients you need through food sources. Dr. Raja can work with you to add calcium-rich foods to your daily diet.
Learn more about osteoporosis screening, prevention, and treatment during your next visit with Dr. Raja, which you can book online or over the phone today.