LOVE YOUR We tend to forget about our bones and that they crave tender loving care too, just like our heart, skin or hair. The skeleton isn’t a dead coat hanger, it’s a living tissue which needs to be nourished and exercised to keep it strong. Like other parts of the body it has to be protected from disease. In this issue’s health article, CL&CL take a look at how to care for your bones and give them the love they deserve! Bones play many roles in the body providing structure, protecting organs, anchoring muscles and storing calcium. While it’s particularly important to take steps to build strong and healthy bones during childhood and adolescence, you can take steps during adulthood to protect bone health, too.
CITY LIFE & COUNTY LIVING
Bones are alive and constantly changing, with new bone being made and old bone lost throughout our lives. In adults, the entire skeleton is completely replaced every seven to ten years. Now that’s an incredible fact. Bones continue to grow in strength until our mid-twenties, at which point bone density reaches its peak. After the age of 35, old bone starts to be lost at a faster rate than new bone can be formed to replace it. In some men and women this bone loss is so severe that their bones become weak, fragile and liable to break very easily. This condition is known as osteoporosis. Fortunately, we can take measures to reduce the risk of developing this disease, enabling us to maintain strong bones through to old age. You are never too young or old to care for your bones.
64
Osteoporosis is a condition that affects the bones, causing them to become weak and fragile and more likely to break (fracture). These fractures most commonly occur in the spine, wrist and hips but can affect other bones such as the arm or pelvis. Approximately 3 million people in the UK are thought to have osteoporosis, and there are over 230,000 fractures every year as a
result. Although commonly associated with post-menopausal women, osteoporosis can also affect men, younger women and children. Out of sight out of mind is particularly evident with our bones. So let us help you to visualise what your bone looks like inside your body. It’s made of a hard outer shell with a mesh of collagen (tough elastic fibres), minerals (including calcium), blood vessels and bone marrow inside. This mesh looks a bit like a honeycomb, with spaces between the different parts. Healthy bones are very dense, and the spaces inside the bones are small. In bone affected by osteoporosis, the spaces are larger, and this makes the bones weaker, less elastic and more likely to break. Bone is a living tissue that is constantly repairing itself. This process is called bone turnover. There are cells which break down old bone (osteoclasts) and cells which build new bone (osteoblasts). This process requires a range of proteins and minerals, which are absorbed from the bloodstream. In childhood, bones grow and repair very quickly, but this process slows down as you get older. Bones stop growing in length between the ages of 16 and 18, but continue to increase in density until you are in your late 20s. As mentioned previously, from about the age of 35, you gradually lose bone density. This is a normal part of ageing, but for some people it can lead to osteoporosis and an increased risk of fractures.