Osteoporosis is a bone disease best described as "porous bones." Bones are living tissue, constantly being rebuilt. With osteoporosis, the rate of bone loss is greater than that of bone rebuilding, causing thin, porous bones that break easily.

More than 44 million Americans have osteoporosis or low bone mass. In Arizona, that number is 810,000 - nearly one-fifth of our total population, including children!

The annual medical cost for osteoporosis and associated fractures in the USA is $17 billion. In Arizona, the disease costs us $236 million per year.

Osteoporosis causes pain, disability, loss of independence, and can lead to death. Twenty-five percent of individuals who break a hip don't live through the first year.

Your bones develop in stages. From birth through adolescence, new bone is built faster than old bone is removed, so bones grow larger and denser. During adolescence, bones grow stronger at an even faster pace than before. Bone mass peaks between ages 20 and 25, then bone loss can outpace formation. After menopause in women, bone loss accelerates because of a decline in estrogen, a hormone that helps protect bones.

The risk for osteoporosis increases if too little bone is formed during youth, or too much is lost later in life, or both. Size and quality of bone may be genetically determined, but other factors also influence bone health. A family history of osteoporosis or bone fractures, a lifelong low-calcium diet, Caucasian or Asian heritage, lack of exercise, low body weight relative to your height, smoking, drinking excess alcohol, lack of menstruation, and taking certain medications are all risk factors for osteoporosis.

While you can't control all your risk factors, you can make lifestyle choices that will decrease your risk for developing osteoporosis. These include: eating a balanced diet rich in calcium, regularly doing weight-bearing activities, avoiding excessive alcohol, and not smoking. Building healthy bones at any age helps prevent osteoporosis later in life.

U. S. Surgeon General's Report on Osteoporosis
U.S. Surgeon General Richard H. Carmona, M.D., M.P.H., F.A.C.S., warned in a 2004 report that by 2020, half of all American citizens older than 50 will be at risk for fractures from osteoporosis and low bone mass if no immediate action is taken by individuals at risk, doctors, health systems, and policymakers. This new report, "Bone Health and Osteoporosis: A Report of the Surgeon General" says that 10 million Americans over the age of 50 have osteoporosis, the most common bone disease, while another 34 million are at risk for developing osteoporosis. And each year, roughly 1.5 million people suffer a bone fracture related to osteoporosis.
This report is the first-ever Surgeon General's report on the topic of bone health. Osteoporosis and other bone diseases can lead to a downward spiral in physical health and quality of life, including losing the ability to walk, stand up, or dress, and can lead to premature death.