Written by maida mesum sandhu

 Scientists have yet to learn all the reasons why this occurs, but the
process involves how bone is made. Bone is continuously changing —
new bone is made and old bone is broken down — a process called
remodeling, or bone turnover.
 A full cycle of bone remodeling takes about 2-3 months.
 In young – the body makes new bone faster than it breaks down old
bone, and the bone mass increases.
 Reaches the peak bone mass in mid-30s.
 After that, bone remodeling continues, but loses slightly more than gain.
 At menopause, when estrogen levels drop, bone loss increases
dramatically.
 Many factors contribute to bone loss, the leading cause in women is
decreased estrogen production during menopause.
 Risk of developing osteoporosis depends on how much bone mass
attained between ages 25 and 35 (peak bone mass) and how rapidly
loses it later. The higher peak bone mass, the more bones "in the bank"
and less likely to develop osteoporosis as ages.
 Not getting enough vitamin D and calcium in the diet may lead to a lower
peak bone mass and accelerated bone loss later.
 Osteoporosis means "porous bones," causes bones to become weak and brittle –
so brittle that even mild stresses like bending over, lifting a vacuum cleaner or
coughing can cause a fracture.
 In most cases, bones weaken when low levels of calcium, phosphorus and other
minerals in the bones and results as low bone density.
 A common result of osteoporosis is fractures of the spine, hip or wrist.
 Although it's often thought of as a women's disease, osteoporosis also affects
many men.
 Back pain, which can be severe if fractured or
collapsed vertebra
 Loss of height over time, with an accompanying
stooped posture
 Fracture of the vertebrae, wrists, hips or other bones
 Normal bone has the appearance of a
honeycomb matrix (left). Under a microscope,
osteoporotic bone (right) looks more porous.
 The strength of the bones depends on their size and
density; bone density depends in part on the amount of
calcium, phosphorus and other minerals bones contain.
 When the bones contain fewer minerals than normal,
they're less strong and eventually lose their internal
supporting structure.