Osteoporosis
Osteoporosis — the loss of bone mass that results in porous, fragile bones — threatens nearly 28 million people in the United States, 80 percent of whom are women. According to the National Osteoporosis Foundation, 8 million women have osteoporosis and millions more have low bone density. Half of all women over the age of fifty will suffer an osteoporosis-related bone fracture at some time during their lives. Most of these fractures are preventable if a doctor diagnoses the early stages of osteoporosis, called osteopenia, at a time when preventable measures are possible. Bone wellness is discussed in detail in Chapter 15, Maintaining Bone Health.
Essential
Don't overlook the importance of getting a bone density screening test! Osteopenia — early bone loss not severe enough to qualify as osteoporosis but a definite warning sign — is present in over two-thirds of the population of women. These statistics have emerged only recently, as bone density screening tests have become more common.
