Osteopenia
The body is constantly making and losing bone. Bone is made using calcium and other minerals obtained from the food that you eat. When the bone making system is in balance, an equal amount of bone is built and reabsorbed. Through changes in a variety of things including hormone levels, medications, activity, and diet, the bone making system can get out of balance. When this happens, the amount of bone lost is greater than the amount of bone made. When the bone starts to become less dense, this is called Osteopenia.
For more information on Osteopenia, please contact your physician. You may also obtain more information from the National Osteoporosis Foundation at www.nof.org.
Osteoporosis
If the bone lost continues to be greater than the amount of bone made, what was once osteopenia will develop into osteoporosis. Osteoporosis is when the bones become thin and brittle. The size of the bones does not change, but the structure of the bone changes. These changes dramatically weaken the bones. Weak bones cannot support the body. When this happens, it can lead to fractures of the vertebrae (bones of the spine) and hip fractures from falls. There are more than 1.5 million fractures related to osteoporosis in the United States each year.
For more information on Osteoporosis, please contact your physician. You may also obtain more information from the National Osteoporosis Foundation at www.nof.org.