What is Osteoporosis?

Osteoporosis simply means ‘porous bones’ The spongy honey combed bone known as trabecular bone is found in the wrist bones, your jaw, the anterior vertebrae and in the neck of the thigh bone (femur) joining your hip.

Osteoporosis indicates a loss of bone density. The bone becomes more porous and fragile particularly as we enter pre and post menopause when our oestrogen levels decline, and we and we subsequently lose the protective effect that this hormone has on our bones. Depending on your genes, nutrition and exercise the rate of bone loss around pre and post menopause varies.

DEXA  – A Dual Energy Xray Absorptiometry

A  T-score in a DEXA scan measures your bone density and compares this to that of a healthy young adult of the same sex. It is expressed in terms of standard deviations from this average: 

T – score > 1   = normal bone density
T – score between -1 and -2.5 indicates osteopenia, a precursor to osteoporosis
T – score < -2.5 indicates osteoporosis meaning reduced bone density.

These scores help healthcare professionals to assess your bone health.

The good news is that with the right exercise for bone health and the right nutrition you might be able to slow down the decline and build bone quality and density. Your goal is to maintain your independence and stay fracture free!   Common sites of fracture include the spine, wrist and hips.

Physically active adults are less likely to have fragility or compression fractures. The key is to maintain your strength engaging in weight bearing and progressive muscle resistance activity to stimulate bone remodelling. Bones are active and living and receive a blood supply.

Bone modelling occurs throughout life to create and repair bone. Osteoblasts build bone and osteoclasts break down bone and releases calcium from the bone by a process called resorption. The bone medications your doctor may prescribe to maintain and preserve your bone density are anti resorptive treatments.