O s t e o p o r o s i s F a
c t s
- Osteoporosis is a major public health threat
for 28 million Americans, 80 percent of whom are women. In the U.S.
today, 10 million individuals already have the disease and 18 million
more have low bone mass, placing them at increased risk for osteoporosis.
- One out of two women and one in eight men
over age 50 will have an osteoporosis-related fracture in their lifetime.
- An average of 24 percent of hip fracture
patients age 50 and over die within a year of their injury.
- Medical expenditures for the treatment of
osteoporosis-related fractures in the United States cost $13.8 billion.
- Medical experts agree that osteoporosis
is highly preventable. By the age 20, the average woman has acquired
98 percent of her skeletal mass. Building strong bones during childhood
and adolescence can be the best defense against developing osteoporosis
later.
- A comprehensive program that can help prevent
osteoporosis is a diet rich in calcium and Vitamin D combined with
regular weight-bearing exercise, and a healthy lifestyle with no smoking
and limited alcohol intake.
References
National Osteoporosis Foundation. (1997) 1996 and 2015 Osteoporosis Prevalence
Figures State-by-State Report. Washington, DC.
Chrischilles, EA, Butler, CD, Davis CS, Wallace RB. (1991) A Model of
Lifetime Osteoporosis Impact.
Arch Intern Med.
151, 2026-2032.
Melton, III, L.J. (1995) How Many Women Have Osteoporosis Now?
J
Bone Miner Res 10(2), 1175-1177.
U.S. Congress, Office of Technology Assessment. (1994, July) Hip Fracture
Outcomes in People Age 50 and Over-Background Paper. OTA-BP-H-120. Washington,
DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.
Ray, N.F., Chan, J.K., Thamer M., Melton, III, L.J. (1997) Medical expenditures
for the treatment of osteoporotic fractures in the United States in 1995:
Report from the National Osteoporosis Foundation.
J
of Bone and Miner Res. 12(1), 24-35.
Teegarden, D., Proulx, W.R., Martin, B.R., Zhao, J., Mccabe, G.P., Lyle,
R.M., Peacock, M., Slemenda, C., Johnston, C.C., Weaver, C.M. (1995) Peak
bone mass in young women.
J Bone and Min Res
(10)5, 711-715.
National Osteoporosis Foundation. (1998) Fast Facts on Osteoporosis. Washington,
DC.