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Get the latest information and research on osteoporosis.
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Livewith Osteoporosis
Find treatment, guidance and advice on living with osteoporosis.
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Share your experience and get involved. Joining the conversation is the first step to ending osteoporosis and broken bones.
Managing & Treating Osteoporosis
Although there is no cure for osteoporosis, there are steps you can take to prevent, slow or stop its progress. In some cases, you may even be able to improve bone density and reverse the disorder to some degree. Getting enough calcium and vitamin D as well as are essential to bone health. There are also medications available to reduce the risk of broken bones. These medicines either (1) slow or stop bone loss or (2) rebuild bone.
Treatment with Osteoporosis Medication
There are many things to think about when choosing the right osteoporosis medicine. You and your healthcare provider may want to look at several things.
Types of Osteoporosis Medications
There are two categories of osteoporosis medications: antiresorptive medications that slow bone loss and anabolic drugs that increase the rate of bone formation.
Paying for Medications and Understanding Your Health Insurance
How much your insurance company pays for your osteoporosis medication depends on the type of insurance plan you have. Osteoporosis medications require a prescription from your healthcare provider. They include oral medications that patients take by mouth, such as tablets and liquids. They also include injections that patients give themselves at home as well as nasal sprays and patches.
Moving Safely
It’s never too early or too late to take steps to protect your bones, especially the bones in your spine. Broken bones of the spine are common in people with osteoporosis and often go unnoticed until more serious problems occur. Learn how to recognize the signs and symptoms of spine fractures and take steps to prevent these fractures from happening in the first place.
Osteoporosis and Your Spine
Your spine is made up of small bones called vertebrae. The picture of the spine shows the different regions of the spine, from the bottom (sacrum) to the top (cervical). People with osteoporosis most often break bones in the upper (thoracic) spine. When these bones break, they can cause pain, height loss and stopped or hunched posture. These posture changes are called kyphosis.
Posture Exercises
When a person develops kyphosis, the posture becomes stooped or hunched. The back also becomes stiff and difficult to straighten. Figure 1 shows that bending forward compresses (squeezes) the front of the spine. This makes it more likely to break a bone in the spine. The figure also shows that leaning or bending backward separates the spine and reduces the chance of a broken bone.
Keeping Your Balance
Balance is very important for people with osteoporosis. Your eyes, ears, muscles and joints all play an important role in maintaining your balance and preventing broken bones. Medical conditions and medicines can also affect balance and your risk of falling. Let’s take a look at these and see how you might be able to reduce your chances of falling.
Quality of Life
When you think about osteoporosis, you may think of the broken bones that can happen to people with this disease. Other images may include height loss and stooped or hunched posture. In addition to these more obvious aspects of osteoporosis, what many of us do not realize is that the disease can have a great impact on a person’s emotional and social health.
Before we discuss how osteoporosis can affect people’s lives, we should note that not all individuals with osteoporosis have emotional and social issues, and that quality of life difficulties are different in each person. For instance, a person who has had broken multiple bones, has very different challenges than a person who has not experienced multiple fractures. Many people can live well with osteoporosis and avoid breaking bones in the first place. But if you have had fractures, it’s important to learn about the steps you can take to maintain a good quality of life.
Thinking and Feeling Good
NOF supports you in making a commitment to your health. We encourage you to think of yourself as having healthy bones and vibrant good health. Some people find positive thoughts are helpful in reaching personal goals. Positive thoughts are also called affirmations or words of wisdom. Some people consider it a type of self-talk. Affirmations can help inspire and motivate you. Many people find that they help change attitudes and transform their lives.
Emotional Aspects of Osteoporosis
When you first learn that you have osteoporosis, you may become anxious. This is especially the case if the diagnosis results from what’s called a low trauma fracture. This means that you broke a bone after an accident that seemed minor or even after no accident at all. If this happens to you, you probably take extra measures to avoid breaking more bones. You might feel that you need to abandon activities that are essential to a good quality of life because of your fear of breaking a bone.
Social Aspects of Osteoporosis
Of all the ways in which osteoporosis affects quality of life, the social consequences may be the least recognized. Managing social limitations is much easier with supportive family members and friends. People with large social networks seem to manage their osteoporosis more effectively than those with smaller networks.
