Bone health and silent bone loss for women

New Delhi: International Women’s Day is celebrated every year on 8 March, which is dedicated to recognizing the achievements and contributions of women. Often women take care of their family’s health, but ignore their own health. Due to this, many health problems are not detected on time.

According to experts, after the age of 30, bone strength starts decreasing in many women. This is called silent bone loss, which can become a serious problem in the future.

What is silent bone loss in women?

According to doctors, with increasing age, bone density in women starts decreasing, which is called osteoporosis. It is also called a silent disease because its initial symptoms are not obvious. Many times women come to know about this problem when suddenly a fracture occurs or the bones become very weak. Therefore, it is very important to take care of bones on time.

Causes of bone weakness after the age of 30

Many hormonal changes occur in women after the age of 30, of which the level of estrogen hormone is important. When the level of this hormone decreases, the strength of the bones also starts decreasing. Apart from this, some lifestyle-related factors can also increase bone weakness, such as:

• Calcium and Vitamin D deficiency
• sitting for long periods of time and less physical activity
• smoking and excessive alcohol consumption
• Family history of bone disease
• very low body weight

All these reasons can gradually weaken the bones.

It is necessary to get the bones checked on time

Doctors say that it is necessary to get checked from time to time to have correct information about the condition of the bones. A DEXA scan is a test that can measure bone density. Through this test, bone weakness is detected at an early stage and treatment can be started on time.

• Eat a diet rich in calcium and vitamin D: Calcium and vitamin D are essential for keeping bones strong. Include milk, curd, cheese, green leafy vegetables, nuts and fortified foods in your diet.
• Do regular exercise: Doing light exercise, walk, yoga or jogging daily increases the strength of bones. Weight bearing exercises also help in strengthening bones.
• Limit alcohol and caffeine intake: Consuming too much alcohol and caffeine can affect the absorption of calcium in the body. Therefore, it is better to consume them in limited quantities.
• Stay away from smoking: Smoking can gradually weaken bones. This also increases the risk of osteoporosis. Therefore it is important to stay away from smoking.
• Keep stress down: Prolonged stress can also affect the health of the body. Stress can be controlled by adopting habits like yoga, meditation and mindfulness.