While bone health is important for everyone, keeping your bones strong is especially important for women. That’s because women are more likely to develop osteoporosis than men. In fact, 80% of the people in the U.S. who have osteoporosis are women, and one in four women over age 65 has the condition.
According to the Office on Women’s Health, there are a few factors that increase women’s risk for bone loss:
Osteoporosis is dangerous because when your bones are fragile, they can easily break. You could break a bone with a light fall that ordinarily wouldn’t cause a problem, or even get a bone fracture when you’re coughing, sneezing or bending. You could also get a compression fracture in your spine because those bones are no longer strong enough to support your body weight.
One in three women over age 65 will likely have an osteoporosis-related fracture. Recovering from these fractures can require surgery and take a long time. In many cases, women may never get back the mobility and independence they had before a fracture caused by osteoporosis.
There are a few steps women can take to keep their bones as strong and healthy as possible:
Learn more about what you can do to lower your risk of osteoporosis, when and how you should be get a bone density scan and the many treatments that are available if you’re diagnosed with osteoporosis.
Whether you’re working to keep your bones strong or need help managing osteoporosis, Banner Health is here to help with your bone health.