Dr. Allan Horowitz, published newspaper article, The Liberal, Copyright September 6, 1989


Dear Dr. Horowitz:

My great-grandmother just fell and broke her hip. She has now been in the hospital for two months and she never seems to get any better. I was discussing this with my teacher who said that a disease called osteoporosis affects many older women. She told me to research this condition and I am writing to you in hopes that you can tell me something about this disease and how I can help prevent it from happening to me.

Answer:

Osteoporosis is a bone disease which causes bones to become thin and brittle. This disease can affect anyone, but usually affects women over the age of 50. (In Canada there are now more than 800,000 women who suffer daily pain and/or disability as a result of this disease).

You don’t say how old you are, but if you’re old enough to recognize this disease might someday affect you, you are old enough to take preventive action now.

In order to maintain their strength, your bones need calcium. This mineral must be consumed on a daily basis. There are many factors which play a role in the development of osteoporosis (diet, exercise, heredity, race, hormones, smoking) but diet and exercise are the two things which you can alter most easily.

A teenage female should consume between 700 and 1,000 mg per day of calcium. Some experts recommend 1,500 mg per day.

Most of our calcium is found in milk or milk products (65 per cent) and foods such as milk, yoghurt, cheese, ice cream (good source of calcium, but bad food for other reasons), almonds, beans, lobster, salmon, sardines, tofu, rhubarb and whole wheat bread should be part of your regular diet.

The other thing you can do to prevent your bones from becoming brittle is to maintain a good amount of daily exercise which puts a bit of stress on your bones. In other words, exercises such as swimming or riding a bike are good exercises but they do not put enough stress on your bones to prevent osteoporosis. Exercises like walking, running, tennis, aerobics etc. will strengthen your bones over the years. (Studies show that women who have had an active life — like raising children, walking to work, exercising, using stairs instead of elevators—have a lower incidence of osteoporosis than other women.)

Excessive consumption of alcohol and caffeine have also been implicated in the onset of this disease, so if you drink a lot of alcohol, coffee or cola products, stop now.

Smoking has been shown to increase the onset of this disease, probably through an altered absorption of calcium, meaning that even if you do take in enough calcium, your body will not use it efficiently.

Women over the age of 50 get this disease more than any other group because that is around the time when women begin to have hormonal changes which will hasten the bone weakening. If you have a family history of early menopause, or other hormone related condition, see your doctor and get some advice about what can be done.

You are too young now to worry about these hormonal factors, but for the sake of getting you an A-plus on your project, I thought I would mention this also.

You show an intelligence beyond your years by wanting to learn everything you can about this crippling disease and I hope I have given you enough information for you to start to plan your route of attack so you will not meet the same fate as your great-grandmother.

A broken hip in an elderly woman is no fun, and potentially very dangerous. Other things which are no fun is shrinking in height, having a rounded upper back, losing your teeth, breaking your ribs when someone hugs you lightly or when you cough, and feeling pain in your back with every step. These are all associated with osteoporosis, so start now to prevent these things.

I want you to write to me again in 60 years to let me know if these suggestions helped at all.

Allan Horowitz, D.C., is a chiropractor practising in Richmond Hill and writes this public service column. He will attempt to answer readers’ questions on a variety of questions including back pain, headaches, nutrition, sport injuries and preventive medicine.

Address your questions to Allan I Horowitz, care of The Liberal, Box 390, Richmond Hill. L4C 4Y6.