Eleven tips for osteoporosis prevention and treatment
1, osteoporosis is a chronic disease that can be prevented and treated.
2, people of all ages should pay attention to the prevention of osteoporosis, the lifestyle of infants and young people are closely related to the occurrence of osteoporosis in adulthood.
3, a balanced diet rich in calcium, low salt and moderate protein is beneficial to the prevention of osteoporosis.
4.Smoking increases the risk of fracture in both men and women.
5. Do not drink alcohol in excess. Daily alcohol consumption should be limited to the standard beer 570ml, white wine 60ml, wine 240ml or aperitif 120ml.
6, walking or running, etc. can play a role in improving bone strength.
7, an average of at least 20 minutes of sunlight per day. Adequate light will play a very critical role in the production of vitamin D and calcium absorption.
8, weight-bearing exercise can allow the body to obtain and maintain maximum bone strength.
9. Prevent falls. More than 90% of fractures in the elderly are caused by falls.
10.High-risk groups should go to regular hospitals for osteoporosis testing and early diagnosis as soon as possible.
11.It is not too late to start treatment at any stage of osteoporosis as opposed to no treatment, but early diagnosis and early treatment will greatly benefit.
Knowledge points
1.What is osteoporosis?
◆ Osteoporosis is the most common bone disease in middle-aged and elderly people.
◆Osteoporosis is a systemic disease, which is mainly characterized by low bone mineral content, destruction of bone structure, reduced bone strength, and susceptibility to fracture.
◆ Pain, hunchback, reduced height and fracture are characteristic manifestations of osteoporosis. However, there are many patients with osteoporosis who often have no obvious sensation in the early stage of the disease.
◆Osteoporotic fractures are fragility fractures that usually occur after daily weight bearing, activity, bending and falling.
◆Fracture is a direct consequence of osteoporosis, which can affect the function of the body in mild cases and cause disability or even death in severe cases. The common fracture sites are the low back, hip and arm.
2.Harm of osteoporosis
◆Osteoporosis is the fourth most common chronic disease and the most common bone disease in middle and old age.
◆Osteoporosis is known as the silent killer. Fracture is a serious consequence of osteoporosis and is often the first symptom and reason for consultation in some patients with osteoporosis. Mortality due to various complications reaches 20-25% within the first year after hip fracture. More than 50% of survivors will have varying degrees of disability.
The direct financial burden of an osteoporotic hip fracture is RMB 32,776 per year. The direct economic burden of osteoporotic hip fracture in China is RMB 108 billion per year.
3.The etiology of osteoporosis
Osteoporosis is influenced by both congenital and acquired factors. Congenital factors refer to race, gender, age and family history; acquired factors include drugs, diseases, nutrition and lifestyle. Old age, female menopause and male hypogonadism are all causes of osteoporosis.
4.High-risk groups of osteoporosis
People with the following factors are at high risk for osteoporosis: old age; female menopause; maternal family history (especially family history of hip fracture); low weight; low sex hormones; smoking; excessive alcohol or coffee consumption; low physical activity; calcium and/or vitamin D deficiency in the diet (low light or low intake); diseases that affect bone metabolism; and application of drugs that affect bone metabolism.
5.Prevention of osteoporosis
◆Osteoporosis can be prevented and treated.
◆People of all ages should pay attention to the prevention of osteoporosis, and the lifestyles of infants and young people are closely related to the occurrence of osteoporosis.
◆The mineral content in human bones reaches its highest in the 30s, which is medically called peak bone mass. The higher the peak bone mass is, the more the “bone mineral bank” reserve in the human body is, and the more delayed and less severe osteoporosis will occur in old age.
Active improvement of diet and lifestyle and adherence to calcium and vitamin D supplementation can prevent or reduce osteoporosis after old age.
◆Balanced diet: increase the intake of calcium and moderate amount of protein in the diet and low salt diet. Calcium intake has an irreplaceable role in the prevention of osteoporosis. Smoking, alcoholism, excessive intake of caffeine and high phosphorus drinks will increase the risk of osteoporosis.
◆ Moderate exercise: human bone tissue is a kind of living tissue, and the activity of muscles in human exercise will keep stimulating bone tissue and make bones stronger. Exercise also helps to enhance the body’s responsiveness, improve balance function and reduce the risk of falling. This makes osteoporosis less likely to occur.
◆Increase sunlight exposure: The Chinese diet contains very limited vitamin D. A large amount of vitamin D3 depends on the synthesis of the skin after receiving ultraviolet radiation from the sun. Regular exposure to sunlight plays a key role in the production of vitamin D and calcium absorption. The average normal person receives at least 20 minutes of sunlight per day.
Tip: Sunscreen and umbrellas also increase the chances of osteoporosis in women. The usual lack of outdoor light, and go out and put on thick sunscreen or use a sunshade, will affect the synthesis of vitamin D in the body.
6.Early diagnosis and standardized treatment to reduce the harm
◆It is better to start treatment at any stage of osteoporosis than no treatment. Getting formal examination early and standardizing medication can minimize the risk of fracture, relieve bone pain and other symptoms, and improve the quality of life.
◆The prevention and treatment of osteoporosis need to be carried out under the guidance of doctors, and its prevention and treatment strategy includes two parts: basic measures and drug treatment.
◆Basic measures include lifestyle modification and basic bone health supplements. Lifestyle modification: a balanced diet rich in calcium, low in salt and moderate in protein; attention to appropriate outdoor exercise; avoidance of smoking and alcohol abuse; careful use of drugs that affect bone metabolism; and various measures to prevent falls. Basic bone health supplements include calcium and vitamin D.
◆Medication includes anti-bone resorption drugs, drugs that promote bone formation, and some drugs with multiple mechanisms. They must be applied under the guidance of physicians.
7.Self-testing for people at high risk of osteoporosis
Tip: People at risk should go to regular hospitals for osteoporosis testing as early as possible to achieve early diagnosis, early prevention and early treatment.
The following questions can help in the self-testing of osteoporosis high-risk conditions, and those who answer “yes” to any of the questions are at high risk and should go to the osteoporosis specialist clinic.
Have you ever hurt your bones because of a slight bump or fall?
Have you been taking hormone drugs for more than 3 months in a row?
Has your height decreased by three centimeters compared to your youth?
Do you often drink alcohol excessively? (Drinking twice a day or only 1-2 days a week without drinking alcohol)
Do you smoke more than 20 cigarettes a day?
Do you often have diarrhea? (caused by celiac disease or enteritis)
◆Have your parents ever had a hip fracture from a slight bump or fall?
◆Ms. answer: Did you go through menopause before 45 years old?
◆Have you ever had no menstruation for more than 12 months in a row (except during pregnancy)?
◆Men answer: Do you suffer from impotence or lack of sexual desire?
Hint: Older and lower weight women especially need to pay attention to osteoporosis, and doctors often use the term “skinny old lady” to describe such high-risk groups. In addition, the lack of exercise, lack of light for young people is also a risk factor for osteoporosis.
8.Myths of osteoporosis
◆Myth 1: Drinking bone broth can prevent osteoporosis.
Experiments have shown that the calcium content in the same bowl of milk is much higher than that in a bowl of bone broth. For the elderly, bone broth has a lot of fat dissolved in the bone, and regular consumption may also cause other health problems. It is important to pay attention to the diversity of diet, eat less greasy food, insist on drinking milk, and should not eat too much protein and caffeine.
◆Myth 2: Treatment of osteoporosis is equal to calcium supplementation.
In simple terms, osteoporosis is caused by abnormal bone metabolism (osteoclasts affect more than osteoblasts in human body, and the rate of bone resorption exceeds the rate of bone formation). Therefore, the treatment of osteoporosis is not just calcium supplementation, but a comprehensive treatment to improve bone mass, enhance bone strength and prevent fractures. Patients should go to regular hospitals for diagnosis and treatment.
◆Myth 3: Osteoporosis is a phenomenon unique to the elderly and has nothing to do with young people.
Osteoporosis is not the “patent” of the elderly. If you neglect exercise in your youth, often picky or dieting, unbalanced diet structure, resulting in low calcium intake in the diet, thin body, and do not refuse bad hobbies, so that you do not achieve the ideal peak bone quantity and quality, you will have the opportunity for osteoporosis to invade young people, especially young women. of women. Therefore, prevention of osteoporosis should be started early so that ideal peak bone mass can be obtained in young age.
◆Myth 4: It is too late to treat osteoporosis in the elderly.
Many elderly people think that osteoporosis cannot be reversed and that treatment is no longer effective in old age, so they give up treatment, which is a great pity. From the point of view of treatment, the earlier the treatment, the better the effect. Therefore, once the elderly are diagnosed with osteoporosis, they should receive regular treatment to reduce the pain and improve the quality of life.
◆Myth 5: Relying on self-perception to discover osteoporosis.
Most of the patients with osteoporosis do not have abnormal sensation at the beginning or do not feel obvious. You should not rely on self-perception to detect osteoporosis. Don’t wait until you find out you have back pain or fracture before going for medical treatment. People at high risk should go to a hospital with dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry for bone density examination regularly, regardless of whether they have symptoms or not, to help understand the changes in your bone density.
◆Myth 6: Osteoporosis is a minor disease and treatment need not be a big deal.
Osteoporosis is usually more than just back pain. Once a fragility fracture occurs, especially hip fracture in elderly patients, it leads to long-term bed rest and high mortality.
◆Myth 7: Osteoporosis treatment can be done by taking medicine by itself without seeing a specialist.
For patients who have been diagnosed with osteoporosis, they should go to a regular hospital early and receive comprehensive treatment from a specialist.
◆Myth 8: Osteoporosis is prone to fracture, so it is better to be still than to move.
Maintaining normal bone density and bone strength requires constant exercise stimulation, and lack of exercise will result in bone loss. Physical exercise has a positive effect on preventing osteoporosis. In addition, if you do not pay attention to physical exercise and osteoporosis occurs, muscle strength will also be reduced, and the stimulation of bones will be further reduced. This will not only accelerate the development of osteoporosis, but also affect the flexibility of joints and make it easy to fall and cause fractures.
◆Myth 9: After fracture surgery, the bones are normal.
The occurrence of fracture often means that osteoporosis has been very serious. Fracture surgery is only a treatment for localized lesions, while the risk of fracture in the whole body bones has not been changed. Therefore, not only do we need to actively treat fractures, but we also need to objectively evaluate our bone health in order to diagnose and treat osteoporosis in a timely manner and prevent further fractures.