Menopause and Osteoporosis Treatment

Menopause is simply the name given to the last menstrual period. Menopause is characterized by the loss of estrogen production by the ovaries. Menopausal and postmenopausal women are especially prone to osteoporosis, about half of them will develop this disease. The menstrual blood is partly blood and partly tissue from inside the uterus, or womb. It passes out of the body through the vagina. Premenstrual syndrome, or PMS, is a group of symptoms that start before the period. Approximately 1 percent of women experience menopause before age 40. Osteoporosis is a silent disease. Osteoporosis leads to literally abnormally porous bone that is more compressible like a sponge, than dense like a brick.

Osteoporosis is a condition that features loss of the normal density of bone and fragile bone. Some osteoporosis fractures may escape detection until years later. The osteoporosis condition can operate silently for decades, because osteoporosis doesn’t cause symptoms unless bone fractures. Osteoporosis is more common in older individuals and non-Hispanic white women, but can occur at any age, in men as well as in women, and in all ethnic groups. Many factors will increase your risk of developing osteoporosis and suffering a fracture. Major risk factors include Older age (starting in the mid-30s but accelerating after 50 years of age) ,non-hispanic white and Asian ethnic background ,small bone structure ,family history of osteoporosis or osteoporosis-related fracture in a parent or sibling.

There are several alternatives of medication to treat osteoporosis. Medications such as risedronate ibondronate raloxifene alendronate and calcitonin-salmon. To keep bones strong, eat a diet rich in calcium and vitamin D, exercise and do not smoke. If needed, medicines can also help. Calcium and vitamin D supplements also help Osteoporosis . Other treatment is estrogen therapy ,weight-bearing exercises and injectable teriparatide. A proper nutrition is a diet sufficient in calcium and vitamin D. Patients at risk for osteoporosis are generally treated with vitamin D and calcium supplements. Avoid excess alcohol intake. Bisphosphonate is the main drug for treatment. Calcitonin (Calcimar, Miacalcin) a hormone made from the thyroid gland, is given usually as a nasal spray or as an injection under the skin.

Osteoporosis Treatment Tips

Teriparatide (Forteo, recombinant parathyroid hormone 1-34) has been shown to be effective in osteoporosis.

Bisphosphonate is the main drug for treatment.

Changes to lifestyle factors and diet are also recommended, both regarding nutrition and exercise.

Weight-bearing exercise is of great importance for people suffering from the osteoporosis

Stopping use of alcohol and cigarettes.

Treat underlying medical conditions that can cause osteoporosis.

Minimize or change medications that can cause osteoporosis.

Menopause Treatment Tips

1. Healthy life helps to control menopause weight gain.

2. Menopause weight gain can be controlled with alternative medicine.

3. Testosterone helps your body to create lean muscle mass out of the calories that you take in.

4. Avoid crash diets.

5. Starvation will only cause your metabolism to slow down, causing you to gain more weight later on.

6. Menopausal women tend to exercise less than other women, which can lead to weight gain.

Osteoporosis : Causes, Symptoms, Treatment

Osteoporosis is a disease in which bones become fragile and more likely to break. If not prevented or if left untreated, osteoporosis can progress painlessly until a bone breaks. These broken bones, also known as fractures, occur typically in the hip, spine, and wrist.Osteoporosis is a disease of bone that leads to an increased risk of fracture. In osteoporosis the bone mineral density (BMD) is reduced, bone micro architecture is disrupted, and the amount and variety of non-collage nous proteins in bone is altered. Osteoporosis is defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) in women as a bone mineral density 2.5 standard deviations below peak bone mass (20-year-old healthy female average) as measured by DXA;

Risk factors of Osteoporosis
Age. The older you get, the higher your risk of osteoporosis. Your bones become weaker as you age.
Race. You’re at greatest risk of osteoporosis if you’re white or of Southeast Asian descent. Black and Hispanic men and women have a lower, but still significant, risk.

Sex. Osteoporosis is more common in women than men. Eighty percent, or four out of five, of the 10 million Americans who have it are women. There are several reasons for this. Women have lighter, thinner bones to begin with. They also lose loose bone rapidly after menopause.

The factors that may contribute to osteoporosis are not well defined. For example, studies by the U.S. National Institute of Child and Human Development (NICHD) have shown that irregular menstrual periods in young women may signal a hormonal shortage that could lead to osteoporosis.

Symptoms of Osteoporosis
Osteoporosis is often called the “silent disease”, because bone loss occurs without symptoms. People may not know that they have osteoporosis until their bones become so weak that a sudden strain, bump, or fall causes a bone to fracture or a vertebra to collapse. However, there may be a chronic, dull pain particularly in the lower back or neck, which may become sharp later in the course of the disease.

Later in the course of the disease, sharp pains may come on suddenly. It may not radiate; it may be made worse by activity that puts weight on the area, may be tender, and generally begins to subside in 1 week. Pain may linger more than 3 months.

Treatment of Osteoporosis
Although osteoporosis has no cure, several types of medications are available to reduce the rate of bone loss, increase bone density, and reduce the number of fractures. In general, they work in two main ways: they lessen bone break down (anti-resorptive agents) or they stimulate the formation of new bone (anabolic agents).

Hormone therapy
Hormone therapy (HT) was once the mainstay of treatment for osteoporosis. But because of concerns about its safety and because other treatments are available, the role of hormone therapy in managing osteoporosis is changing. Most problems have been linked to certain oral types of HT, either taken in combination with progestin or alone.In addition, it is important to get enough vitamin D. A daily intake of 400 IU, but no more than 800 IU, each day is recommended. Obtaining adequate amounts of vitamin D from our food may be difficult. The main sources of dietary vitamin D are fortified milk (100 IU/cup), egg yolks (25 IU/yolk) and oily fish (vitamin D content varies).

Causes of Osteoporosis, Symptoms of Osteoporosis and Treatment

Osteoporosis is a disease of the bones characterized by a decrease in bone mass and structural deterioration of bone tissue, leading to bone fragility and increased susceptibility to fractures of the hip, spine and wrist.

The word “osteoporosis” literally means “porous bones.” Osteoporosis (pronounced OSS-tee-o-puh-RO-sis) occurs when bones begin to lose some of their essential elements. The most important of these elements is calcium. Over time, bone mass decreases. As a result, bones lose their strength, become fragile, and break easily. In extreme cases, even a sneeze or a sudden movement may be enough to break a bone.

Osteoporosis affects millions of older adults, usually striking after 60. Although it is most commonly found in women, it is not unheard of in men. Osteoporosis can be very far along before it became noticeable. Sometimes the first sign is a broken bone in the hip, spine, or wrist after a bump or fall. As the disease gets worse, other signs may appear such as pain in the back and ultimately, a curved backbone.

Causes of Osteoporosis

The average rate of bone loss in men, and in women who have not reached menopause, is actually quite small. However, after menopause, the bone loss in women accelerates to an average of one to two percent a year. It is after menopause that the level of the female hormone estrogen in a woman?s body decreases sharply. Estrogen is a hormone that is important in protecting the skeleton by helping the body?s bone forming cells to keep working. So after menopause, this protection can be considered lost as the level of estrogen decreases.

Other causes of osteoporosis are heredity and lifestyle. Whites and Asians, tall and thin women and those with a history of osteoporosis are those at the highest risk of getting osteoporosis. The behavioral causes of increasing the risk of osteoporosis are smoking, alcohol abuse, prolonged inactivity and a diet low in calcium.

Symptoms and Treatment

Usually, osteoporosis does not cause any symptoms at first. Osteoporosis is often called the “silent” disease, because bone loss occurs without symptoms. People often don’t know they have the disease until a bone breaks, frequently in a minor fall that wouldn’t normally cause a fracture. Many people confuse osteoporosis with arthritis
and believe they can wait for symptoms such as swelling and joint pain to occur before seeing a doctor. It should be stressed that the mechanisms

Treatment for osteoporosis includes eating a diet rich in calcium and vitamin D, getting regular exercise, and taking medication to reduce bone loss and increase bone thickness. It’s important to take calcium and vitamin D supplements along with any medicines you take for osteoporosis. Even small changes in diet, exercise, and medicine can help prevent spine and hip fractures. Adults who adopt healthy habits can slow the progress of osteoporosis.

Think calcium, eat calcium. Learn to love tofu, tinned sardines and salmon and dark green leafy vegetables. Dairy produce and calcium enhanced foods are good calcium replenishments for bone.

Osteoporosis Treatment

With Osteoporosis treatment each case is different but when you consider that 1 in 3 women over the age of 50 can be sufferers in some way shape or form that things can be generalised to some aspect.

The reason women are so vulnerable is due to the hormone change during the menopause which deprives the body of certain vitamins and minerals it needs to fight of this bone crippling disease.

For effective Osteoporosis treatment the first thing to think about is to make sure that the body receives the extra supplements it needs. Things like extra Calcium, and all the other standard vitamins found in fresh fruit and vegetables making sure a good healthy diet is in place which will in turn be beneficial.

It is also true that men suffer as well but in men the figure only tends to be 1 in 12. There are many things each and every one of us must avoid and one of the main ones is smoking.

If you are a smoker we all know that it is hard to give up as the body gets use to having that drug pumping through your body.

Like smoking, red meat, and alcohol also contribute to the acidic value of the intake to the body. The acid then gets into the system and weakens the bodies natural defence system.

At this point I?m not preaching that you should give up red meat and alcohol but simply to cut back to moderation. This in it self will be an effective Osteoporosis treatment.

To take things further try replacing the odd fizzy drinks with tea or coffee so that by taking these drinks with milk you will take on board more calcium.

Summing up can be simplified, and affective Osteoporosis treatment can be made simple by first taking care of your diet and make sure that it is mainly on the alkaline side rather than the acidic. Many articles and books are available on this subject and it?s never too late in life to make that effective change to keep away the problems concerned with Osteoporosis.