WHEN YOU KNOW YOU HAVE BRITTLE BONES: MANAGEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
Careful management under your doctor’s supervision can probably reduce the rate of further bone loss, possibly stop loss of bone and even gradually strengthen your skeletal mass.
If you have secondary osteoporosis due to another disease or condition, treatment of this other ailment early enough to save your bone mass can be beneficial. If, for instance, you can reduce your need for drugs to combat inflammatory arthritis, or hyperthyroidism, you may be able to prevent the loss to your skeleton that these can cause, apart from age-related bone loss. Here are further useful ideas for your fight against osteoporosis:
1. Have regular bone-density tests performed by your personal physician or at your local clinic, every three to six months depending on severity, so your skeletal mass can be monitored.
Eliminate as many ‘negative factors’ as you can (e.g., stop or cut down smoking and drinking) and ‘accentuate the positive’ (e.g., eat well, drink plenty of lowfat milk, get as much exercise as you can manage, and be out in the sunshine!).
Keep a daily log of dietary calcium and vitamins and other supplements (perhaps utilizing your home computer). Calcium should be at least 1200 to 1500mg each day.
Check that your bed is comfortable with firm support; a sheet of % in (2cm) plywood beneath the mattress is an instant and inexpensive solution, or try a water bed.
Immediately after back injury, or when you have strained muscles, ice packs will help reduce swelling and inflammation. Rest as much as you can.
If your back problem is stiffness on waking, try warmth to soothe and relax: a warm bath, the warm sun, warm heating pads.
Massage can increase the flow of blood to your back and relax muscles.
Gentle stretching exercises can flex your back muscles; swimming can give you gentle exercise while supporting your body.
Prolonged sitting can place more stress on your back than standing, since your pelvis is not supporting you in that position. Change positions often, whether in bed, at home, or at work, and be sure your chair has a back-rest, preferably adjustable.
Women should look critically at the heel height of their shoes and discard any pair with heels of more than 1.5 in.
Use painkillers sparingly – they can be addictive, and if pain is masked, you could further injure your back unknowingly.
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Posted in Healthy bones Osteoporosis RheumaticTags: Healthy bones
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